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The  Millionaire  Tramp. 


EGBERT  C.  GIVINS 


CHAPTER     I. 

AN  ANCIENT  FEUD. 

"  Strange  Is  it,  that  our  bloods, 
Of  color,  weight  and  heat,  pour'd  all  together, 
Would  quite  confound  distinction,  yet  stand  off 
In  differences  so  mighty." 

Landsdowne  is  a  name  to  be  found  in  the  parish  rec- 
ords of  Maidestone,  England,  for  several  centuries. 

The  Margates  came  in  1776,  from  an  advanced  farming 
section  of  the  north,  ready  to  give  the  benefit  of  their 
advice  to  all  about  them. 

Squire  Landsdowne,  being  a  near  neighbor,  received  a 
generous  share;  but,  having  lorded  it  over  the  community 
for  many  years  he,  unfortunately,  was  not  inclined  to  be 
dictated  to. 

Differences  arising  between  them  grew  till  one  day  the 
original  Squire  Landsdowne  was  ploughing  in  a  new  and 
stony  field.  The  day  was  oppressive.  He  had  sworn  enough 
since  breakfast  to  fulfill  the  requirements  of  a  sea  cap- 
tain. The  horses  were  nervous  and  balky,  flies  numerous 
and  bothersome,  and  as  the  ploughshare  would  frequently 

2061835 


2  THE   MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP. 

antagonize  a  boulder  of  unusual  proportions  the  Squire 
would  pave  the  atmosphere  with  old-fashioned  profanity. 

"Hoo*  art  thee  th1  day,  Squire?"  said  the  original  Mar- 
gate as  he  folded  his  arms  leisurely  over  the  stone  fence 
which  acted  as  a  division  line  between  a  section  of  their 
farms.  The  Squire  answered  w'th  a  puff,  and  wiping 
the  perspiration  hurriedly  from  his  brow  he  caught  the 
plough  again  without  attempting  to  stop.  Five  paces 
ahead,  directly  on  the  line  of  his  last  furrow  and  the  com- 
ing ploughshare  was  a  huge  stone,  to  avoid  which  required 
all  the  ingenuity  and  dexterity  the  Squire  possessed. 

"  Ye' s  doan't  pere  to  understan'  the  knack  of  holdin' 
the  ploo  as  we  do  north'ard,"  said  Mr.  Margate,  in  rather 
a  loud  and  authoritative  tone  of  voice.  The  Squire, 
simultaneously  with  this  remark,  hit  the  rock  full  abreast, 
the  concussion  almost  jerking  him  off  his  feet. 

Vesuvius  burst  in  all  its  glory,  and  as  the  Squire  threw 
the  ploughshare  over  on  its  side,  he  hissed  through  his 
volcanic  throat  with  all  the  pent-up  venom  of  a  year  : 

"  Why  the  devil,  sir,  didn't  you  stay  up  north?"  The 
original  Margate  made  no  reply,  but  retraced  his  steps  to 
his  home,  atrociously  and  pointedly  insulted.  Three 
generations  passed  away,  but  the  animosity  did  not.  It 
was  bequeathed  like  an  heirloom  and  became  intensified 
as  developed  in  the  succeeding  new  blood. 


It  was  1876.  A  century  had  passed.  Squire  John 
Landsdowne  number  three  had  the  same  hard  features  of 
his  ancestor.  The  house  had  been  rebuilt.  A  magnifi- 
cent structure  stood  upon  the  site  of  its  predecessor,  con- 
taining all  the  improvements  that  modern  art  could  sug- 
gest. Wonderful  hedges,  variegated  foliage  neatly 


THE   MILLIONAIRE  TKAMP.  3 

trimmed,  parterres  carefully  kept,  rich  green  lawns, 
statuary  along  the  walks,  deer  grazing  in  the  park. 
A  great  change  had  come  over  the  spirit  of  the  old 
place.  The  handiwork  of  modern  design  had  changed  the 
old-fashioned  home  into  elaborate  rooms,  stately  halls, 
majestic  windows  and  flower-clad  balconies ;  in  fact,  a  pal- 
ace was  Landsdowne  Hall. 

The  Margates,  too,  were  not  to  be  outdone.  On  the 
hill,  through  the  stately  oaks,  shone  the  glittering  dome 
of  their  elegant  residence,  jealous  rivalry  keeping  up 
one  continual  effort  to  outdo  the  other  family  in  the  mag- 
nificence of  their  respective  abodes.  The  fences,  gates 
and  buildings  were  massive,  the  lawns  and  gardens,  too, 
were  tastily  and  beautifully  kept,  and  a  small  Eden  was 
opened  to  view  as  one  peeped  up  the  long  avenue  from 
the  highway  leading  to  "Oak  Hill,"  a  name  lately  con- 
ferred upon  the  place. 

The  present  Margate,  whose  Christian  name  was  Arch- 
ibald, was  well  informed,  possessing  intelligence  fur 
beyond  the  ordinary  country  gentleman ;  a  patient  student, 
proficient  in  many  arts  and  sciences,  well  posted  in  the 
current  topics  of  the  day,  in  politics  a  whig,  and  a  leader 
in  many  issues  which  affected  his  section  of  the  country. 
Being  a  fluent  and  earnest  speaker  his  chance,  for  gain- 
ing a  seat  in  parliament  at  no  distant  day  was  regarded  as 
favorable. 

Archibald  Margate  had  an  only  son,  upon  whom  he 
staked  great  possibilities.  Warren,  a  bright,  energetic 
youth  of  nineteen,  tall  and  keen-eyed,  and  of  such  a  gay 
and  cheerful  disposition  that  he  had  earned  many  friends 
among  his  collegiate  acquaintances. 

Warren  could  pull  a  good  stroke,  bat  a  fair  innings  at 
cricket,  and  was  by  no  means  raw  in  fencing,  boxing,  and 


4  THE   MILLIONAIRE    TRA3IP. 

other  athletic  pastimes;  true,  he  had  coursing  through 
his  veins  a  little  of  the  obtrusive  and  dictatorial  spirit  of 
the  Margates,  but,  underlying  this,  was  a  stratum  of 
good  nature  and  mirthfulness,  taken  from  his  mother,  a 
dear,  light-hearted  lady  which  rather  offset  the  former. 

Lillie,  his  sister,  seventeen,  and  the  prettiest  girl  in  all 
Kent,  was  so  attached  to  him  that  she  looked  forward  with 
dread  to  the  approaching  end  of  his  vacation. 


Charles  Landidowne,  the  only  son  of  Squire  Lands- 
downe,  was  a  tine,  manly  fellow,  with  intelligent  dark 
eyes,  clear,  bright,  resolute  face,  and  a  powerful  neck, 
which,  alone,  indicated  the  stubbornness  of  his  race;  gen- 
ial and  kind,  he  was  a  faithful  friend  but  a  dangerous 
opponent  when  crossed,  as  many  a  young  man  who  had 
measured  backs  with  him  on  the  playground  sand  at 
Maidestone  College  well  knew. 

His  favorite  sport  was  shooting,  to  which  he  devoted 
much  of  his  leisure  time.  He  inherited  the  aversion  to 
the  Margates,  but  it  had  been  noticed  that  during  services 
in  St.  Mark's  Church  on  the  hill,  in  the  old-fashioned 
square  family  pew,  Young  Landsdowne  would  sit  in  such 
a  position  that  fair  Lillie  Margate's  face  could  be  viewed 
without  much  effort;  and  so,  too,  it  was  only  human  that 
he  might  once  in  a  great  while  catch  a  gleam  of  light 
from  her  lovely,  flashing  eyes.  But  this  was  only  during 
a  very  interesting  sentence  of  the  worthy  rector's  sermon, 
and  when  the  sturdy  head  of  the  venerable  Squire  was 
turned  in  the  opposite  direction. 

The  families  never  interchanged  a  word. 

One  bright  Sunday  morning,  the  church  being 
crowded,  Lillie  had  waited  to  talk  a  moment  at  the  close 


THE   MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP.  5 

of  the  services  with  a  young  lady  in  a  neighboring  pew. 
While  passing  through  the  crowd  to  overtake  her  family 
she  accidentally  dropped  her  prayer  book.  Young  Lauds- 
downe  hesitated  for  a  moment — he  was  near  her  in  the 
aisle  then  picked  it  up,  bowed  politely — blushed.  Yes, 
a  manly,  healthy  blush,  and  returned  it  to  her.  Did  Lil- 
iio  respond  in  the  same  manner?  Aye!  it  was  the  crim- 
son which  can  only  mount  to  the  cheek  of  a  maiden  pure 
and  free  from  all  affectation.  And  the  smile  which  accom- 
panied it  came  from  a  heart  in  which  the  family  animosi- 
ty had  found  no  place. 


There  was  a  farm  hand  at  Landsdowne  Hall  named 
William  Lindley,  of  sullen  temperament,  hard-working 
enough,  but  inclined  to  have  trouble  with  the  men.  He 
had  been  warned  by  the  Squire  twice;  a  third  warning 
was  equivalent  to  a  dismissal  at  the  Hall.  This  man  had 
been  in  the  habit  of  visiting  the  kitchen  of  the  Margates 
to  see  a  young  woman  employed  as  assistant  cook,  named 
Phoebe.  It  came  to  the  notice  of  young  Warren  Margate 
that  this  fellow  meant  no  good  by  his  frequent  visits; 
and  on  one  sultry  starlight  evening  while  Warren 
was  enjoying  a  walk  on  the  lawn  back  of  the  house 
he  overheard  a  conversation  between  Phosbe  and  the 
man  which  fully  confirmed  his  suspicions.  Young 
Margate  walked  up  to  him  and  demanded  peremptorily  by 
what  right  he  trespassed  upon  the  ground*.  The  answer 
was  sullen  and  impertinent:  "What  business  be  this  of 
yourn,  young  maester,  perhaps  as  you  be  sweet  on  the 
girl  yourself?" 

"  I  will  make  it  my  business,  you  scoundrel,"  quickly 
responded  Margate, 


6  THE    MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP. 

"  Them's  big  words  from  a  hinsignifica't  chap  as  ought 
to  be  a  gentleman,"  sneered  Lindley.  "You  be  a  bigun  on 
your  own  grown'  no  doubt."  Lindley  was  a  powerful  man 
and  a  brute  in  all  his  instincts.  He  was  aware  that  young 
Margate  was  something  of  an  athlete  but  thought  his  own 
muscular  superiority  sufficient  to  counterbalance  his 
opponent's  science.  "  Now  young  un,  'itthe  first  blow,  as 
I  don't  want  ter  commence  the  assault;"  and,  true  to  the 
admonition ,  Margate  landed  a  terrific  left-hander  on  Lind- 
ley's  face  which  reeled  him ;  following  his  adversary  up 
Margate  led  with  his  right,  before  Lindley  had  time  to 
rally  and  knocked  him  down.  Lindley,  enraged  at  being 
struck  so  keenly,  rose  to  his  feet  and  made  a  terrible  kick 
:;t  Margate,  which  fortunately  missed  him. 

"You  dastardly  coward, "exclaimed  Margate,  excited 
at  this  outrage,  "  I'll  show  you  how  to  fight."  Margate 
q-aickly  disrobed  him  of  his  coat,  put  up  his  arms  in  a  true 
and  scientific  manner,  and  led  a  severe  blow  on  Lind- 
loy's  swollen  face.  Phoebe  had  run  to  the  house  for  help ; 
finding  no  one  she  returned  with  a  broom,  a  woman's 
usual  weapon  of  defence.  As  Margate  sparred  about  for 
a  chance  he  caught  a  glimpse  of  Phoebe  and  ordered  her 
to  retire. 

Lindley  made  several  desperate  lunges  at  his  nimble 
adversary,  his  anger  increasing  at  his  ineffectual  blows. 

One  of  Lindley's  wild  passes  made  a  severe  bruise  on 
young  Margate's  forehead,  drawing  the  blood.  Margate 
now  summoned  up  all  his  strength,  striking  right  and 
left  from  the  shoulder,  forcing  the  enemy  back  and  getting 
three  magnificent  blows  on  his  adversary's  face. 

Lindley  rushed  forward  in  a  dogged,  obstinate  manner, 
apparently  half  stupefied  with  the  punishment.  Margate, 
taking  advantage  of  his  carelessness,  administered  a  sledge- 


THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  7 

hammer  upper  cut  which  completely  knocked  Lindley  off 
his  feet. 

Then  grasping  him  by  the  collar  he  jerked  him 
unwillingly  down  the  lane  to  the  highway  and  giving  him 
a  parting  shove  towards  Landsdowne  Hall,  said :  "  There, 
now,  you  dog,  never  let  me  see  you  on  these  premises 
again."  Lindley  shambled  hurriedly  along  the  road; 
when  at  a  safe  distance  he  turned,  and  shaking  his  fist, 
called  out  through  the  darkness,  "  I'll  get  even  with  ye 
yet,  young  devil/' 


CHAPTER    II. 

A  CHANCE  MEETING. 

"  It  matters  not  the  antagonistic  blood, 
Or  opposition  of  stern  religious  creed, 
All  barriers  •will  drift  away  with  Time's  great  flood 
If  never  dying  true-love  be  the  planted  seed." 

Soon  after  this  occurrence  at  Oak  Hill  Charles  Lands- 
downe  had  occasion  to  transact  some  business  about  two 
miles  from  his  home,  and,  as  the  weather  was  pleasant, 
he  went  afoot.  Returning,  it  was  becoming  twilight.  It 
was  one  of  those  beautiful  autumn  evenings  we  wish 
could  always  remain  with  us;  the  golden  leaves  were  fall- 
ing on  the  roadside,  the  myrtle  and  sumach  in  the  corner? 
of  the  fields  shone  forth  resplendent  with  their  autumnal 
hues.  In  the  distance  could  be  heard  the  irregular  tink 
ling  of  the  cow- bells  as  the  faithful  kine  wandered  lazily 
homeward.  The  thrush  was  singing  his  evening  hymn. 
The  hop  gardens  and  Kentish  landscape  over  the  undulat- 
ing fields,  lit  by  the  fading  rays  of  the  sinking  sun,  made 
a  beautiful  picture.  He  paused  to  look  back  on  these 
familiar  scenes,  and  his  mind  entered  a  channel  of  happj 
and  ambitious  thought.  He  was  day-dreaming  of  the 
brilliant  prospect  in  store  for  him.  His  father  was  getting 
on  in  years  and  would  soon  retire  from  the  active  field  of 
life,  and  he,  as  inheritor  of  Landsdowne  Hall,  would  soon 
occupy  an  enviable  position  among  his  neighboring  ac- 
quaintances. "  I  will  not  be  «ontent  with  the  ordinary 


THE   MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  9 

title  of  Squire,"  he  said;  "  a  name  must  be  made  for  the 
family — Sir  Charles  Landsdowne !  that  sounds  aristocratic. 
But  stay,  I  am  dreaming;  the  very  substance  of  these  am- 
bitious thoughts  is  merely  the  shadow  of  a  dream." 

As  he  thus  mused  his  thoughts  reverted  to  the  fair  face 
of  Lillie  Margate,  and  while  this  angel  vision  flitted  past 
he  indeed  heard  the  rustling  of  her  wings ;  for,  lo !  a  few 
steps  behind  him  in  the  road,  advancing  with  hurried 
steps,  came  none  other  than  she.  Lillie  had  been  visiting 
some  girl  friend  and  was  returning  home.  As  she  passed 
she  bowed  pleasantly.  Landsdowne  hesitated  a  moment, 
and  then,  raising  his  hat  politely,  he  stepped  beside 
her  and  begged  permission  to  accompany  her.  His 
gallantry  was  accepted  with  the  same  sweet  smile  he  had 
encountered  in  the  church  aisle.  "  Think  of  it,"  he  said ; 
"a  Margate  and  a  Landsdowne  walking  home  together." 

"Something  that  has  not  happened  in  three  genera- 
tions," replied  Lillie,  slightly  embarrassed. 

Landsdowne  was  a  brave  youth;  but,  nevertheless,  no 
snare-drum  expert  ever  beat  a  more  efficient  tattoo  than 
did  his  heart  against  the  innermost  portals  of  his  vest  upon 
this  memorable  occasion. 

Mustering  up  courage  Charles  broke  the  silence  which 
succeeded  Lillie's  last  sage  rejoinder: 

"  Just  think  of  it;  you  and  I  ought  to  have  been  play- 
mates." 

"Yes,"  she  replied ;  '  'instead  of  being  born  to  dread  each 
other  like  young  wild  beasts." 

More  courage. 

"  Then  we  will  dispel  this  absurd  antagonism,  won't 
we?" 

"  Yes,  we  must,"  cheerily  the  pretty  maiden  answered, 
her  cheeks  suffused  with  rosy  blushes.  She  was  elad  in 


THE    MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP. 


an  ordinary  waterproof  wrapper,  and  as  the  evening  dew 
would  soon  begin  to  fall  she  had  raised  her  hood.  In 
this  simple  attire,  facing  towards  the  West,  her  usually 
bright  face  reflected  the  bright  rays  of  the  setting  sun, 
and  simultaneously  illumined  with  joy  the  doubting  heart 
of  young  Landsdowne. 

As  the  evening  faded  into  night  Lillie  accepted  the 
proffered  arm,  and  the  Squire's  son  wished  that  the  walk 
home  was  one  hundred  miles  instead  of  one.  Leisurely 
they  strolled  along,  and  many  pleasant  allusions  were 
made  to  their  clandestine  acquaintanceship. 

"  How  the  Governor  would  stare  should  he  meet  us 
now,"  chuckled  Landsdowne.  At  the  very  thought  the 
Margate  held  on  more  firmly  to  the  Landsdowne  arm  and 
shrugged  her  graceful  shoulders.  That  she  should  abhor 
the  Squire  was  innate,  but  for  what  real  reason  this  cheer- 
ful maiden  could  not  tell. 

"  Who  is  that?  "  exclaimed  Charles,  as  he  came  to  a  dead 
halt.  "  It's  the  Governor,  or  I  am  not  his  son." 

True  enough.  In  the  high-seated  sulky,  hitched  to 
"  Bonny  Doon,"  his  favorite  night  horse,  sat,  severe  and 
stately,  in  bold  relief  against  the  fading  twilight,  none 
other  than  the  sturdy  Squire. 

Miss  Margate,  quick  as  a  flash,  turned  to  march  on  as  if 
not  in  company  with  young  Landsdowne,  but  in  this  case 
woman's  adroitness  was  surpassed  by  man's  presence  of 
mind;  for  Charles,  standing  directly  in  front,  she  became 
completely  eclipsed  by  his  broad  shoulders.  The  Squire 
ioo-o-ed  alon^  without  taking  the  slightest  notice  of  them, 

J     fttt  ° 

he  being,  as  usual,  busy  ruminating  over  some  matter  per- 
taining to  the  estate. 

«'Oh,  my!  how  glad  I  am  he  did  not  see  us,"  exclaimed 
Lillie,  in  a  whisper. 


THE   MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP.  11 

"  Ah !  but  he  saw  me.  I'll  wager  he  is  going  over  to  old 
Judge  Orcott's  for  supper.  They  are  discussing  some  po- 
litical problem,  and,  perhaps,  the  Governor  is  making  up 
his  argument." 

No  sooner  had  the  words  escaped  his  lips  than  ft  deep 
voice  hallooed  through  the  dusk : 

"  Hi  there !     Charley  boy,  is  that  you  ?  " 

The  Squire  would  never  allow  anything  to  interfere 
with  his  cogitations,  and  when  his  mental  argument  waa 
concluded  he  recollected  having  seen  his  son. 

"  Yes,  sir,"  answered  the  son. 

"  Do  you  want  to  go  with  me  ?  " 

"  No,  thanks,  I  will  go  home." 

The  Squire  disappeared. 

They  were  nearing  the  gate  of  Oak  Hill  when  Lillie 
said: 

"Mr.  Landsdowne,  I  am  exceedingly  sorry  I  cannot  ask 
you  in." 

"Never  mind,"  he  answered,  "you  and  I  must  go  to 
work  and  clear  away  this  mist  of  unfriendliness  " — tightly 
holding  her  hand — "  and  now  we  must  part." 

She  held  down  her  head  a  moment,  and  then,  looking  up 
quickly  in  his  face,  she  made  no  reply;  a  little,  sparkling 
tear  could  be  seen  in  one  corner  of  her  lustrous  eye. 

"  I  am  exceedingly  thankful  for  your  company  and  your 
protection.  Good  night !  Good  night !  " 

Landsdowne  noticed  a  slight  tremor  in  her  voice  as  she 
spoke  the  last  good  night.  Kaising  his  hat,  he  replied : 

"  My  dear  Miss  Margate,  Adieu!  till  we  meet  again? 


MUKonain  Tramp  2. 


CHAPTER    III. 

TROUBLE  BREWING. 

•'  There  is  nae  luck  about  the  house, 
There  is  nae  luck  at  all. " 

When  Lillie  Margate  passed  up  the  avenue,  through  the 
front  yard,  after  her  walk  with  Landsdowne,  Wallace, 
their  old  Scotch  gardener,  stood  at  the  front  gate,  his 
mouth  open  wide  with  amazement. 

"  It  couldna  be,  it  couldna  be.  Th'  Landsdowne  son 
ta'kin'  to  our  Miss  I  Deery  me !  Oh !  deery  me !  Gude 
lordy !  I  fere  there's  treble  bruin',  treble  bruin',  and  it'a 
Freeday  th'  day.  Ill  luck !  ill  luck ! " 

This  jumble  was  partly  overheard  by  Lillie,  but  believ- 
ing it  impossible  for  "Wallie"  to  have  identified  Lands- 
downe, as  by  that  time  it  had  grown  quite  dark,  she  en- 
tered the  house,  paying  no  further  attention  to  the  old 
man's  remarks. 

A  strange  superstition  existed  among  the  servants  of 
these  peculiar  families,  and  old  Wallace  slept  but  little 
that  night;  he  regarded  the  event  of  the  "  make  up"  as 
portentous  of  evil.  However,  he  kept  his  knowledge  of 
the  clandestine  meeting  of  Charles  and  Lillie  a  dead  secret, 
believing  silence  as  essential  in  this  case  as  after  a  bad 
dream. 

Saturday,  the  day  following,  was  usually  devoted  by 
young  Landsdowne  to  shooting  grouse  in  the  thickets 
about  two  miles  back  from  the  highway,  a  spot  he  had 


THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  13 

visited  every  fall  for  many  years.  He  was  an  expert  shot 
with  the  fowling  piece  and  was  known  as  such  the  country 
over. 

The  day  dawned  favorably  for  a  good  day's  sport.  He 
knew  the  thickets  so  well  he  did  not  take  his  famous  hunt- 
ing dog,  Sport,  who  howled  dismally  as,  imprisoned  in 
his  kennel,  he  saw  his  master  pass  along  the  lane. 

His  gun  had  been  properly  cleaned  and  loaded  the 
evening  before  by  one  of  the  farm  hands,  and  he  started 
out  on  a  brisk  walk,  as  it  was  a  fresh  and  chilly  morning. 

Reaching  the  thicket  he  crossed  the  fence,  making  a 
short  cut  to  a  spot  where  he  had  frequently  had  good 
luck.  He  noticed  immediately  in  front  of  him  on  the  ground 
a  fine  brace  of  grouse ;  as  he  was  about  to  raise  his  gun  the 
form  of  a  man  appeared,  partially  hidden  by  the  thicket. 
Not  desiring  to  lose  his  shot  he  was  about  to  fire  at  the  game, 
when  the  bending  of  a  bough,  against  which  his  right  arm 
rested,  caused  the  muzzle  of  the  gun  to  sway  out  of  line 
with  the  birds ;  in  an  instant  his  forefinger  touched  the 
hair-trigger;  a  loud  report,  and,  gazing  through  the  smoke 
following  the  discharge,  he  soon  beheld  a  sight  that 
chilled  his  blood,  riveting  him  for  a  moment  to  the  spot. 
Before  him  lay  the  prostrate  form  of  Warren  Margate, 
breathing  heavily.  Rushing  forward  through  the  thicket 
he  raised  Margate's  head  in  his  arms. 

"  Merciful  Heaven !  there  is  no  hope,"  exclaimed  Lands- 
do  wne. 

The  entire  load  of  shot  had  entered  his  neck,  punctur- 
ing the  jugular  vein.  It  was  but  a  few  minutes  ere  life 
would  depart  forever.  Quickly  attempting  to  stop  the 
flow  of  blood  with  his  handkerchief,  he  discovered  some 
of  the  pieces  had  entered  the  brain. 

"  My  God  1  Margate,  speak  to  me.     What  have  I  done? 


14  THE   MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP. 

Oh,  horrible  accident!  Oh,  luckless  fate!  Help!  help!  " 
He  shouted  in  vain. 

Poor  Warren  lifted  his  eyes  from  which  the  light  of  the 
world  was  quickly  fading.  He  made  a  desperate  attempt 
to  speak,  but  the  dark  red  blood  gurgled  in  his  manly 
throat,  and  the  only  words  Landsdowne  could  distinguish 
sounded  like  "Two  shots!  Two  shots!"  Sinking  in  a 
faint  he  could  say  no  more. 

There  was  an  expression  on  his  face  which  meant  some- 
thing Landsdowne  could  not  interpret.  Margate,  in  his 
dying  moments,  had  endeavored  to  make  some  sign  that 
Landsdowne  would  comprehend;  but,  alas!  he  breathed 
his  last  five  minutes  after  receiving  his  death  wound. 

Landsdowne  wept  bitter  tears  over  the  sad  accident. 
Tenderly  covering  the  remains  with  the  shooting  coat  re- 
moved from  the  body,  he  started  homewards.  Retracing 
his  steps  a  few  paces  he  paused  to  consider  what  was  best 
to  be  done.  The  full  force  of  his  unfortunate  position 
dawned  upon  him ;  dropping  his  gun  and  throwing  up  his 
arms  in  an  appealing  attitude  to  heaven,  he  exclaimed: 

"  Merciful  God,  I  am  lost!  I  am  a  doomed  man;  there 
is  no  hope.  If  I  return  to  Landsdowne  Hall  I  will  be  con- 
victed and  hung.  Who  will  believe  a  Laudsdowne  enter- 
tained no  malice  against  a  Margate,  and  that  this  shooting 
was  an  accident?"  He  wrung  his  hands. 

"  What  have  I  done?  brought  disgrace  and  disaster  on 
the  name  of  Landsdowne  forever.  Wait ;  there  is  but  one 
chance.  I  will  take  it." 

Quickly  hurrying  back  to  the  fatal  spot  he  kneeled  over 
the  chilling  form  and,  kissing  the  cold  forehead,  said : 

' '  Good-bye !  poor  boy.  Did  you  but  know  the  truth. 
Could  you  but  speak.  Oh,  heaven!  so  young.  What  a 
fetal" 


THE   MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  15 

Looking  up  he  imagined  he  heard  the  rustling  of  leaves 
as  though  some  one  approached.  He  arose,  walking  hur- 
riedly to  an  open  spot  in  the  thicket ;  he  looked  over  the 
fence  and  beheld  in  the  distance  the  glittering  vanes  of 
Landsdowne  Hall.  'Twas  one  last  look,  and  as  he  turned 
to  leave  he  raised  his  hat,  saying  : 

"Farewell,  my  home!     My  home  no  longer  now." 
He  started   in  a  roundabout  way  toward    the    main 
road  and  was  seen  no  more. 


CHAPTER    IV. 

THE   FAREWELL   RECEPTION. 

"  \Vho  would  guess 

If  ever  more  should  meet  those  mutual  eyes, 
Since  upon  night  so  sweet,  such  awful  morn  could  rise." 

It  was  toward  five  o'clock  on  the  afternoon  of  the  same 
day.  Old  Wallie,  the  gardener,  who  had  been  picking  a 
few  choice  roses  from  the  hot-house  to  decorate  the  dark 
tresses  of  Lillis  that  evening,  called  at  the  door. 

There  was  to  be  a  farewell  reception  at  Oak  Hill  for 
Warren,  who  would  not  be  home  again  till  Christmas. 

Several  college  chums  residing  in  the  neighboring 
towns  had  been  invited,  together  with  some  young  ladies, 
the  daughters  of  well-to-do  farmers,  and  a  few  relatives 
and  friends  from  the  city.  In  fact,  quite  a  little  enter- 
tainment was  provided  and  a  joyous  time  anticipated. 

Old  "Wallace  sighed  as  he  handed  Miss  Lillie  the  flow- 
ers. 

"  Why,  my  dear  old  '  Wallie,'  what  is  troubling  you? 
What  makes  you  so  sad?  " 

The  old  man  shook  his  head  but  said  nothing.  He  went 
out  as  was  his  habit  when  anything  worried  him,  and  sat 
and  smoked  on  the  stile  by  the  orchard  * '  a  bit "  before 
supper. 

As  he  sat  there  the  smoke  from  his  ancient  clay  pipe 
curled  up  spirally  into  the  clear  air.  Of  what  was  the  old 
man  thinking?  He  was  picturing  in  his  mind  all  the  at- 
tempts during  his  career  at  reconciliation  between  the 
families,  when  who  should  come  crawling  along  with  his 


THE  MILLIONAIRE   TKAMP.  17 

peculiar  gait  but  his  neighbor,  John  Tague,  who,  sixty 
years  ago,  was  a  playmate  of  his  on  the  verdure-clad  hills 
of  Scotland. 

"  Weel,  John,  how  be  it  wie  thee,  my  mon?  " 

"  Ah !  the  same  auld  sang ;  nothing  much  a  doo  and  a 
plenty  o'  gudeeatin',"  replied  John. 

"  Sit  doon,  mon,  and  ta'k  a  bit.  I've  been  bruidin* 
o'er  forebodin's  a'  th'  day,  John,"  said  Wallie,  as  he  puffed 
reverentially  with  his  black  pipe. 

"  Deen  the  young  meister  ha'  o*  luick  the  day?  " 

"  That  as  I  is  trooblin'  aboot." 

"  Ye  nae  meanin'  that  aught  happened  the  boy,  lad?  " 

"  Nae,  I  hope  not,  but  it's  a  lang  time  o'  his  returnin*. 
Did  ye  nae  hear  o'  the  rumpus  he  had?  " 

John  pulled  out  his  pipe  and  looked  at  Wallie  with  pro- 
found astonishment. 

"  What,  th'  mon  Lindlee,  be  he  Yorkshire  or  Lanca- 
shire I  dinna  nae  ken,  was  a  makin'  oop  to  the  girrel  o' 
th'  kitchin',  and  he  meant  nae  gude — leasten  sae  the  young 
meister  thot,  an'  he  basted  both  on  the  rogue's  eyes,  and 
whirrirred  him  oot  o'  the  Ian  gate  lak  o'  cur  doeg." 

"  Gude,  gude,"  heartily  laughed  old  John,  as  he  knocked 
the  ashes  out  of  his  pipe.  "  He's  a  brave  un,  the  young 
gintleman." 

'*  But  I  fere  it's  nae  gude  thing  after  all,  as  I  nae  laked 
the  luike  o'  that  sulkiu'  brute,  Liudlee,"  said  Wallie. 

"Young  meister  went  a  gunnin'  th'  day,  an*  he  asked 
wha'  the  spots  for  the  grouse  o'  the  ruffled  kine  run  last 
eve,"  earnestly  spoke  John. 

Wallie  relit  his  pipe,  and  said  with  a  yawn: 

"  I'd  feel  mesel  easier  to  see  him  in  yon  gate." 

John  Tague  stretched  himself,  yawned,  and  walked  off 
without  saying  a  word.  Wallie  walked  in  to  supper. 


18  THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP. 


Warren  Margate's  fall  vacation  was  drawing  to  a  close, 
and  he  had  determined  to  have  a  day  at  the  grouse  in  the 
thickets  before  returning  to  college.  So  it  happened  that 
on  the  evening  prior  to  this  he  had  applied  to  old  John 
Tague,  a  neighbor  and  crack  shot,  fora  little  information 
regarding  the  best  spots  to  find  the  game.  At  the  time 
he  was  talking  to  Tague,  whom  he  met  on  the  road  in 
front  of  Tague's  house,  Lindley  came  up,  but  seeing  War- 
ren he  scowled  sullenly  and  walked  away. 

It  was  an  hour  before  the  time  when  the  company  was 
expected. 

Mrs.  Margate  inquired  of  Wallie  if  Warren  had  returned. 
Receiving  a  negative  reply,  Edward,  a  boy  working  on 
the  place,  was  dispatched  to  a  neighbor's  to  see  if  he  might 
have  gone  there,  as  he  would  probably  have  exhibited  his 
game  to  Albert  Fielding,  a  college  chum,  a  mile  down  the 
road,  had  he  been  successful.  The  boy  returned.  No 
news. 

The  stately  lamps  on  the  wide  veranda  were  lit.  The 
gate  lights  cleaned  and  hung  up.  Wallie  ate  but  little,  his 
face  was  pale,  and  the  hired  girls  jibed  him,  but  he  made 
no  reply.  Along  came  several  jolly,  laughing  girl  friends 
of  Lillie's.  The  music  usual  to  the  country  dance  arrived. 

It  began  to  be  whispered  about,  "  Where  is  the  host?  " 
Lillie  came  down  stairs  radiant  with  happiness,  her  dark 
hair  decorated  with  the  loveliest  of  roses.  She  was  indeed 
bewitching. 

' '  Never  mind  brother,  he  will  be  here  in  a  few  min- 
utes," she  gayly  replied  to  many  inquiries. 

"Oh,  girls!  the  music  has  come,"  she  said;  "  let  us  have 
a  little  impromptu  dance." 

Mrs.   Margate   came   down  in  her  new  dress  looking 


THE   MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP.  19 

almost  the  counterpart  of  her  daughter,  notwithstanding 
the  lights  and  shadows  of  fifty  years  had  swept  her  well 
preserved  fair  face,  saying: 

"  Is  it  not  too  bad  Warren  is  not  here.  I  am  really  be- 
coming annoyed  at  him.  He  has  gone  shooting,  and  those 
wild  boys  never  know  when  to  desist." 

Time  passed  on.  It  was  eight  o'clock.  Mrs.  Margate 
looked  distressed  and  retired  to  her  room.  The  mirth  of 
the  party  seemed  to  die  away  and  foreboding  whisperings 
took  its  place.  Albert  Fielding,  who  had  just  arrived, 
proposed  to  two  or  three  young  men  to  organize  a  search 
lor  him.  A  loud  knock  at  the  front  door  announced  some 
one.  All  rushed  forward  to  welcome  the  missing  host. 
It  proved  to  be  the  senior  Margate,  who  had  been  to  the 
city. 

When  informed  of  Warren's  mysterious  absence  a  slight 
pallor  spread  over  Archibald's  usually  ruddy  face. 

He  had  been  informed  of  the  late  trouble  with  Lindley, 
and  knew  some  mischief  might  come  of  it.  After  saluting 
the  guests  and  conversing  with  and  comforting  his  wife, 
he  retired  to  his  study. 

At  this  juncture  young  Fielding  proposed  to  organize  a 
hunt,  which  proposal  was  heartily  accepted  by  all  hands, 
for  he  was  as  nimble  as  a  deer  and  as  powerful  as  an  ox  : 
a  fit  leader,  ready  for  an  adventure  at  a  moment's  notice. 

The  party  was  soon  prepared  for  the  start.  Old  Wallie, 
with  a  large  lamp  and  a  coil  of  rope,  strutted  about  the 
yard  with  considerable  officiousness. 

"  Where  is  Warren's  dog?  she'll  trace  him,"  shouted 
one.  Loosing  the  spaniel  from  her  chain, she,  too  Joined  in 
the  hunt  with  as  much  interest  as  the  rest. 

Lillie  stood  sobbing  at  the  door  as  they  disappeared  in 
the  darkness,  the  other  girls  comforting  her. 


20  THE  MILLIO2UIBE  TBAMP. 

The  old  gardener  kept  his  eye  on  the  spaniel,  Gypsy. 

"  Now,  lassie,  gae  scent  oot  th'  young  meister." 

The  dog  crossed  along  the  field  and  ran  up  and  down 
several  times  to  a  lane  some  distance  back  of  the  house. 
The  brute  yelped  several  times,  and  whined,  evidently  in- 
dicating she  had  found  the  trail. 

Wallie  whistled  to  the  spaniel  to  keep  close.  Following 
in  the  wake  were  a  half  dozen  young  men,  Albert  Field- 
ing being  next  to  Wallie,  who  knew  every  foot  of  ground 
on  the  estate.  After  walking  stealthily  for  two  miles  they 
reached  the  thicket,  the  stone  fence  dividing  the  Mar- 
gate property  from  that  west  of  it.  Along  this  fence  the 
dog  halted  and  barked,  running  up  and  down  it  several 
times.  Gypsy  seemed  to  have  lost  the  trail,  when 
suddenly  she  sprang  and  scrambled  over  the  fence.  The 
night  was  dark  and  the  glarish  rays  from  the  lanterns  lit 
up  the  brown  leaves  with  an  ominous  light.  Again 
Gypsy  jumped  the  fence. 

"  He  did  not  go  in  that  direction,"  exclaimed  Fielding. 

"  Puir  boy,  he's  nae  far  awa  from  here,"  said  old  Wallie 
in  a  subdued  and  tremulous  voice. 

The  latter  remark  of  the  old  gardener  caused  a  gloom  to 
spread  over  the  party  momentarily,  but  when  Gypsy  again 
jumped  the  fence,  a  certain  excitement  prevailed. 

"  Let  us  go  on,"  hurriedly  shouted  Fielding,  as  with 
one  hand  on  the  top  he  jumped  the  stone  fence  clear. 

"  Hand  me  a  light,"  he  said. 

"Wait,  mon;  nae  so  fast.  Wait  for  my  auld  bones;" 
and  two  of  the  party  helped  the  old  man  over. 

Gypsy  was  howling  and  barking.  In  a  brief  minute  all 
had  crossed  the  fence  and  were  pushing  their  way  through 
the  thicket,  young  Fielding  leading.  In  an  open  spot  on 
the  grass,  covered  by  his  coat,  the  flickering  light  of  half 


TELE   MILLIONAIRE   TBAMT.  31 

a  dozen  lanterns  cast  their  rays  on  all  that  was  mortal  of 
the  host  of  the  evening,  Warren  Margate.  With  trem- 
bling hands,  and  tears  running  down  his  weather-beaten 
face,  the  old  Scotchman  lifted  the  coat  gently  from  the 
body.  A  horrified  murmur  came  from  all  mouths  simulta- 
necMJsly : 

"Murdered!!" 

"Aye!  and  in  cauld  bluid,  cauld  bluid,"  said  old  VTallie, 
as  he  broke  down  with  excitement  and  rested  on  the 
blood-stained  grass. 

*  «  »        *  *  *  * 

When  Landsdowne  left  the  thicket  he  gained  the  main 
road  leading  northward  toward  Chatham.  He  had  but  a 
few  shillings  about  him.  Caring  nothing  for  food  he 
stumbled  and  staggered  along  in  a  half  dazed  condition. 
Having  traveled  many  miles,  footsore  and  tired  he  sat 
under  the  friendly  shadows  of  a  veteran  oak,  which 
spread  its  rugged  branches  over  the  roadside.  He  soon 
fell  into  a  melancholy  reverie. 

"  Such  is  life,"  he  said;  "  while  sailing  along  in  placid 
waters  by  a  peaceful  shore,  a  sudden  storm  arises,  driving 
Us  hard  upon  the  rocks ;  sitting  perched  up  there,  hungry 
and  forlorn,  we  behold  our  only  comfort,  the  distant  sails 
of  happiness  that  have  past. 

He  fell  asleep.  In  his  dream  he  saw  again  the  assuring 
smile  of  Lillie  Margate;  her  dear  eyes  seemed  to  beam 
upon  him,  her  voice  called  to  him :  "  Charles,  I  know  the 
truth." 

A  sunbeam  through  the  oak  leaves  kissed  the  wanderer 
into  wakefulness.  As  he  rose  to  his  feet  the  horror  of  the 
late  accident  pursued  him.  Looking  at  his  watch  he 
found  he  had  slept  over  an  hour* 


THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP. 


"Ah!  I  must  move  on;"  and  again  he  trudged  on  his 
weary  way.  At  sundown  the  spires  and  tall  masts  of 
vessels  in  the  seaport  city  of  Chatham  could  be  seen  in  the 
distance. 


It  was  nearly  11  o'clock  the  night  of  the  party  at  Mar- 
gate's. The  music  had  been  dismissed,  the  brilliant 
lamps  turned  down,  and  a  dread  quietude  reigned  through- 
out the  house.  Archibald  Margate  remained  in  his  library 
in  a  brown  study.  He  sat  in  his  easy  chair  with  his  hands 
shoved  far  into  his  capacious  pockets.  There  was  a  look 
of  calm  sternness  on  his  face,  indicating  a  determination 
to  accept  the  inevitable. 

The  old  family  clock  in  the  hall  was  just  chiming  por- 
tentiously  the  hour.  Calling  a  servant  he  inquired  if  any 
news  had  come — the  same  result  as  his  inquiry  at  half-past 
ten, — "None,  sir." 

Mrs.  Margate  had  lain  down  on  the  lounge  in  the  back 
parlor;  she  was  being  comforted  by  two  young  ladies  who 
had  remained  for  their  escorts  to  return  and  accompany 
them  home. 

Lillie  was  sitting  chatting  between  suppressed  sobs  to 
some  of  the  guests.  Assuring  words  were  being  adminis- 
tered by  those  about  her. 

Fifteen  minutes  later  the  watch-dog  announced  the  re- 
turn of  the  party.  No  hurrahs,  no  shouts  of  joy.  The 
very  fact  they  did  not  cheer,  the  murmuring  of  voices 
through  the  night,  cast  a  cloud  over  the  hope  cherished 
by  Archibald  Margate  that  his  boy  was  safe. 

"  God  be  merciful!"  he  exclaimed;  "  What  can  it  be?" 

The  lantern  cast  a  light  on  something  they  were  carry- 
ing on  a  rude  stretcher  made  of  boughs. 


THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP. 

Margate  rushed  to  meet  them. 

"Ah!  puirmeister,  it's  all  oop  wie  your  puir  bye,"  said 
VTallie,  as  he  hobbled  along  the  lane,  almost  dead  from 
fatigue. 

We  must  draw  the  curtain  down  on  the  agonizing  scene 
of  a  father's,  mother's  and  sister's  poignant  grief  at  the 
loss  of  a  loved  and  only  son  and  brother. 


CHAPTER    V. 

FATE  FROWNS. 

11  With  equal  foot,  rich  friend,  Impartial  Fate 
Knocks  at  the  cottage  and  the  palace  gate.* 

As  the  lights  of  Chatham  shone  forth,  Landsdowne  ex- 
perienced that  peculiar  sensation  that  comes  over  one,  who, 
under  a  cloud,  enters  a  strange  city.  Lurking  behind 
every  corner  seemed  an  enemy. 

As  he  advanced,  however,  he  became  bolder,  and  while 
ruminating  over  his  trouble,  he  exclaimed : 

"  Never  mind,  Landsdowne,  you  have  one  comfort,  you 
are  innocent,  and  the  weight  of  a  guilty  conscience  will 
not  add  to  your  burden  of  misfortune. 

His  feet  were  blistered  with  his  heavy  hunting  boots. 
Feeling  the  pangs  of  hunger,  he  sought  lodging  at  a  small 
wayside  inn,  and  slipping  in  unnoticed  to  the  waiting-room 
told  the  landlord  he  wanted  a  bed  and  supper  at  once. 
After  his  repast  he  soon  fell  into  a  refreshing  slumber,  not 
waking  till  broad  daylight.  Leaving  the  inn  he  took  the 
back  streets  and  wandered  about  till  he  came  to  a  news- 
stand. Purchasing  a  newspaper  he  looked  it  over  eagerly, 
expecting  to  see  the  horror  of  the  day  before ;  but  not  a 
word.  The  news  had  not  reached  Maidestone  in  time  for 
the  early  press.  But  as  he  passed  the  telegraph  office  he 
was  horrified  to  see  his  name  posted  as  the  murderer  of 
Warren  Margate.  At  first  he  felt  a  desire  to  return  and 
deny  the  outrageous  charge,  but  upon  second  thought  he 
knew  how  futile  such  an  effort  would  bo. 


THE   MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  25 

Proceeding  to  a  small  shop  he  purchased  with  his  re- 
maining few  shillings  a  common  sailor  suit.  He  then 
changed  his  clothes,  and  found  himself  in  almost  complete 
disguise.  He  walked  to  the  dock  and  witnessed  for  an 
hour  a  vessel  preparing  to  leave,  her  destination  being 
Philadelphia,  U.S.  Speaking  to  the  captain,  who  appeared 
a  good-natured,  business  sort  of  a  party,  he  secured  a 
position,  as  he  was  short  of  men. 

"  I  kinder  like  your  looks,"  said  the  American  captain. 
"  Can  you  write  a  good  hand?  " 

"  Yes,  sir." 

Entering  the  cabin  of  the  Amazon,  a  brig-rigged  vessel 
of  large  tonnage,  Landsdowne  signed  his  name  in  the 
book,  James  Darrow.  The  captain  had  been  checking  the 
invoice  of  the  promiscuous  articles  which  were  being 
shipped  aboard  his  craft,  en  route  to  the  great  Centennial 
Exposition  in  Philadelphia. 

"  Your  some  posted  on  writin*  and  keepin'  accounts,  I 
guess?  " 

"  Yes  sir." 

"  I  see  you  scratch  a  good  fist." 

Darrow  smiled. 

"  Now,  I've  some  business  up  town  and  I  will  leave  you 
to  check  off  them  goods  as  they  come  in.  Ye  don't  drink, 
does  ye?  No?  Well,  I'll  bet  I  can  depend  on  you. 
That  goldarned  drunken  idiot  I've  had  gets  fuller  than  a 
tick  every  time  we  strike  port ;"  and  the  captain  went  away 
talking  loudly  to  himself. 

The  sun  was  shining  warm,  and  Darrow,  with  his  sun- 
burned face  and  sailor  suit,  could  easily  have  been  mistak- 
en for  an  old  salt. 

He  had  not  been  keeping  the  account  long  when  a  man 
eame  walking  leisurely  up  the  dock,  eyeing  every  one  on 


26  THE   MILLION AJHE  TRAMP. 

board.  He  came  up  and  sat  lazily  on  a  box  near  the  ac- 
countant. 

Darrow  was  a  man  of  iron  nerve,  and  had  the  true  grit 
of  the  ancient  Landsdownes.  The  terrible  events  and 
fatigue  in  the  past  twenty-four  hours  had  almost  un- 
nerved him ;  but  he  became  self-possessed  when  he  sus- 
pected this  fellow  was  after  information  regarding  him. 

"  Say,  sir.  Are  you  the  captain  or  mate  of  this  vessel?" 

"  Neither;  I  am  a  sailor." 

Darrow  went  on  with  his  tally,  never  looking  up. 

*'  We're  looking  for  a  cove  as  is  wanted,  and  I  would 
like  to  have  you  keep  an  eye  for  such  a  one.  I  should 
judge  about  your  build ;  brown  hair  and  eyes ;  a  young 
man  of  good  address;  of  good  family,  and  his  name  be 
Charles  Landsdowne.  We  have  word  from  headquarters 
to  look  after  him.  Now,  if  such  a  party  should  show  up 
he  might  ask  a  passage  on  your  craft.  Now,  I'll  give  you 
my  card,  and  if  you  see  such  a  party  you'll  get  enough  for 
your  trouble  if  you  let  me  know  on  the  sly;"  accompany- 
ing his  statement  with  a  knowing  wink.  "  There's  my 
card,  John  Squibbs,  detective,  80  Front  street,  Chatham. 

Darrow  took  the  card,  indifferently  putting  it  in  his 
pocket ;  made  another  entry  in  his  book,  and  said : 

"  All  right;  I'll  keep  my  eye  on  such  a  man." 

Tearing  a  leaf  out  of  the  back  of  his  book  he  dotted 
down  the  description.  Squibbs  strolled  along  the  dock 
to  another  vessel. 

Darrow  breathed  easier  as  he  tore  the  description  of 
himself  into  atoms. 

The  captain  returned  and  shortly  the  Amazon  sailed 
quickly  out  of  the  harbor.  As  Landsdowne  stood  on  the 
deck  and  saw  Chatham,  England,  his  home,  all  that  he 


THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  27 

loved  and  cherished  on  earth,  melt  from  view,  a  sease  of 
loneliness  came  over  him.  But  he  discovered  that  the 
Captain,  although  a  rough  fellow  outwardly,  was  like 
an  unpolished  gem.  When  smoothed  by  respect  and 
obedience  his  good  qualities  shone  like  a  diamond. 


The  Millionaire  Tramp  3, 


CHAPTER  VI. 
THE  CORONER'S  INQUEST. 

"  Thou  hast  all  seasons  for  thine  own,  O  Death." 

The  morning  after  the  remains  of  Warren  Margate  had 
been  carried  home  Squire  Landsdowne  had  risen  early ; 
he  had  missed  Charles,  and  on  making  inquiries  of  the 
servants  as  to  his  whereabouts  received  no  satisfactory 
reply.  Lindley  had  busied  himself  mending  a  fence  back 
of  the  house.  Walking  over  to  him  the  Squire 
asked: 

"  When  did  you  see  Master  Charles  last?  " 

Lindley  started  at  the  sound  of  his  voice  and  almost 
dropped  his  hammer. 

"  Ain't  seed  'im  since  yesterday,  sir." 

"  Where  was  he  then?  " 

"  A  gowen  out  a  gunnin'  for  a  bit  o'  grouse,  sir." 

"  What  time  was  this?"  anxiously  inquired  the  Squire. 

"  Aboot  daylight;  he  was  gowen  out  to  yon  thicket;" 
pointing  over  towards  the  woods. 

"Why  tho  devil  did  you  not  tell  me  this  before?"  sternly 
demanded  the  Squire. 

"  I  specked  as  he'd  been  'ome  this  good  bit,  for  aught  I 
knowed,  sir.  'Pon  'onor,  sir." 

"  Well,  go  and  hitch  up  Black  John,  do  you  hear?  1 
must  go  hunt  the  boy.  Go  on!" 

As  Lindley  turned  his  head  to  go  to  the  barn  the  Squire 
noticed  his  terribly  black  eyes  and  cut  nose. 


THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  29 

"  Hold,  sir;"  exclaimed  the  Squire,  suspecting  some- 
thing wrong.  "  Who's  been  pounding  you?  What's 
the  trouble  here?  "  irately  demanded  the  Squire. 

Lindley  held  his  head  down  and  mumbled,  * '  Nothing, 
sir." 

"  There  is  I  Speak,  sir!  "  and  the  color  rushed  to  the 
Squire's  already  florid  cheeks. 

Lindley  endeavored  to  reply  evasively,  but  the  Squire, 
seizing  him  with  his  powerful  grasp  by  the  collar,  shook 
him  into  a  fluent  utterance  by  one  jerk. 

"  Well,  sir,  to  tell  the  truth,  sir,  I  was  badly 
whipped,  sir,  by  a  party,  sir." 

"  I  want  the  whole  story.  What  party?"  the  Squire 
demanded,  thinking  Charles'  absence  might  have  had 
something  to  do  with  Lindley's  eyes. 

"Well,  sir,  I'd  been  a  courtin'  of  Margate's  kitchen 
girl,  sir,  and  it  seems,  sir,  as  though  young  Margate,  sir, 
was  jellus,  or  thereabouts,  sir,  or  8ummat  o'  that  kind, 
and  he  'saulted  me,  sir,  and  beat  me  most  terrific." 

"  What  !  !  "  roared  the  Squire,  "  young  Margate 
beat  my  hired  help?"  and  the  Squire's  anger  at  Lindley 
was  turning,  for  the  nonce,  into  sympathy  for  him,  and 
bitter  hatred  toward  all  the  Margate  family,  from  ages 
back  to  the  last  born.  Swearing  a  blue  streak  he  donned 
his  hat,  grasped  his  heavy  cane,  and  set  out  towards  the 
Margate  mansion.  All  the  venom  of  three  distinct  gen- 
erations raged  in  the  old  gentleman's  breast. 

"  The  insolent,  interfering,  insulting,  northern  up- 
start brat,  I'll  give  him  a  talking  to  for  attacking  my 
hired  man.  My  hired  man,"  he  repeated,  with  an  air  as 
though  the  man  was  his  own  son. 

Beaching  the  gate  of  Oak  Hill  he  saw  a  number  of  men 


80  THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP. 

walking  to  and  fro  on  the  lawn.     Several  horses,  with 
buggies  and  carriages,  were  hitched  near  the  gate. 

"  What  is  going  on  here?  "  demanded  the  Squire  of  John 
Fielding,  his  friend,  whom  he  saluted  at  the  gate. 
"Haven't  you  heard  the  awful  news,  Squire?  " 
Taken  aback,  and  cooling    down    quickly    from    his 
irascible  mood,  the  Squire  stopped,  wiping  the  perspira- 
tion from  his  brow. 

"  What  news?"  he  asked. 

•  •  -  • 

"  Why,  poor  young  Margate  has  been  murdered." 

Behind  the  roughness  of  Squire  Landsdowne's  nature 
there  lurked  a  sympathetic  disposition,  and  when  Fielding 
spoke  these  words  the  accumulated  malice  disappeared  like 
smoke.  He  had  struck  a  chord  in  the  Squire's  heart  few 
of  his  associates  knew  he  possessed.  The  Squire  rested 
his  foot  on  the  gate  and  listened  attentively  to  the  horrible 
recital. 

"  And,  Squire,  what  is  worse  than  all — man,  I  hate  to 
tell  you.  You  will  forgive  me?  "  and  as  Fielding  put  his 
hand  on  the  old  man's  shoulder,  he  exclaimed  with  a  voice 
full  of  emotion : 

"My  God,  sir,  they  suspect  your  boy" 

Squire  Landsdowne  had  had  a  peaceful  life  aside  from 
the  usual  strife  accompanying  his  vocation.  He  was 
widely  and  favorably  known  as  a  man  of  unimpeachable 
honor.  No  stain  of  dishonesty  or  crime  had  ever  tainted 
the  family  name. 

There  was  no  blot  on  the  family  escutcheon ;  therefore, 
had  an  earthquake  opened  a  chasm  of  one  thousand  feet 
in  front  of  him,  he  could  not  have  been  more  dumb- 
founded. He  clung  to  the  fence  with  both  hands,  tremb- 
ling like  an  aspen  leaf,  his  ruddy  face  pale  to  a  distressing 


THE  MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP.  31 

degree,  his  eyes  fixed  as  though  he  was  stone.  At  length 
he  spoke  cautiously : 

"Fielding,  upon  what  grounds  do  they  suspect  my 
son?  " 

"Oh,  Squire!  my  friend,  I  am  sorry  to  bring  such 
news  to  you,"  answered  Fielding;  "  I  hope,  I  sincerely 
hope,  the  suspicion  is  unfounded.  They  merely  found  a 
handkerchief  with  Charles'  name  on  it.  Your  house  has 
been  watched,  Squire,  since  11  o'clock  last  night;  Charles 
has  not  returned." 

"  Go  on,  tell  me  more,  that  part  is  true,"  replied  the 
Squire,  becoming  more  cool. 

"  One  barrel  of  Charles'  gun  was  found  discharged, 
and,  what  is  worse  than  all,  the  cartridge  in  the  loaded 
barrel  contained  the  same  shot  as  that  picked  from  the 
neck  and  brain  of  poor  young  Margate." 

"Merciful  God!  is  that  true?  "  groaned  the  Squire,  be- 
coming agitated  as  the  evidence  of  his  son's  guilt  seemed 
to  accumulate.  He  clutched  the  gate  for  support;  he 
reeled  as  if  to  faint.  Fielding,  who  was  a  powerful  man, 
steadied  him  and  tried  to  console  him.  Again  assuming 
his  accustomed  sturdiness  he  started  for  the  house. 

"  Don't  go  in,  for  the  sake  of  heaven,  don't." 

"  Let  me  go." 

"  No,  Squire,  do  not  I  pray;  it  will  only  create  a  scene. 
Now,  like  a  good  man,  let  us  proceed  to  your  home  and 
discuss  this  horrible  accusation  rationally." 

The  Squire  clutched  Fielding's  arm  and  never  spoke  a 
word  till  he  reached  Landsdowne  Hall. 

"  What  time  do  they  hold  the  inquest,  Fielding?  "  asked 
the  Squire,  as  he  sat  down  in  the  large  hall  and  buried  his 
face  in  his  hands. 

"  At  eleven  o'clock." 


32  THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP. 

"It  is  now  ten.  One  hour!"  The  Squire  .shod  to 
the  door  and  shouted,  "  II:,  there!"  to  Linuley,  who  was 
still  hammering  at  the  fence. 

"You  saddle  '  Royal  George'  and  drive  to  Jenkins 
&  Thorpe's  law  office,  Maidestone.  Tell  Thorpe  I  want 
him  at  once.  Time  can  be  saved  only  in  your  going," 
said  the  Squire,  as  he  passed  in  to  talk  with  Fielding. 

"  It  is  a  matter  of  vast  importance  Thorpe  should  be  at 
the  inquest.  " 

Fielding  replied:  "Thorpe  will  take  three-quarters 
of  an  hour  to  get  here." 

"Yes,  yes!"  said  the  Squire,  "and  old  Royal  will  go 
there  in  five  minutes. 

Lindley,  evidently  pleased  to  get  away  from  the  Squire's 
scrutinizing  eye,  jumped  into  the  saddle  and  vanished  like 
a  flash.  The  hubbub,  whisperings,  cryings,  suspicions 
and  theories  developed  at  Landsdowne  Hall  during  the 
balance  of  the  day  can  be  better  imagined  than  described. 

Lindley  obeyed  his  master  with  alacrity.  The  ride  to 
Maidestone  was  five  miles,  occupying  a  little  over  twice 
as  many  minutes. 

Thorpe's  always  ready  drag  was  at  his  office  door,  and 
he  proceeded  to  Landsdowne  Hall ;  occupying  precisely 
the  balance  of  the  important  hour. 

Lindley  had  noticed  as  he  flew  past  the  Margate  fence, 
a  lot  of  people  collected  on  the  inside  discussing  the  hor- 
ror, and  a  dread  of  impending  danger  impelled  him  to  re- 
solve that,  after  delivering  his  message,  never  to  return 
to  Landsdowne  Hall;  so  giving  Royal  George  a  slight 
rest  he  jogged  out  of  Maidestone  by  the  north-westerly 
road,  leading  to  Seven  Oaks,  where  he  sold  the  old  horse 
to  a  blacksmith,  who  asked  him  fifty  questions.  He  then 


THE   MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP.  33 

proceeded  to  London  by  rail  and  was  soon  hidden  in  that 
labyrinth  of  humanity.  i 

****** 

It  was  nearly  noon  when  the  coroner  sat  in  a  back  room 
of  the  Margate  Mansion  to  investigate  the  cause  of  the 
death  of  the  family's  pride.  Several  college  chums  had 
come  with  sadness  depicted  on  their  usually  cheerful  faces. 

Old  Wallie,  with  his  new  corduroy  suit  and  clean-shaven 
face,  was  immediately  behind  the  coroner,  catching  every 
word  as  it  dropped  from  this  oracle  of  wisdom. 

The  jury  of  neighbors  being  summoned  sat  surround- 
ing the  dead  form. 

Three  physicians,  who  had  just  finished  a  post-mortem 
examination,  had  adjourned  to  another  room  to  hold  a  con- 
sultation. 

Barry  Thorpe,  barrister,  sat  quietly  in  one  corner  of 
the  room  taking  notes. 

The  first  witness  called  was  John  Tague,  who  testified 

"that  he  had  seen  Warren  Margate  the  evening  prior  to  the 

night  he  was  found  dead.     That  he  had  consulted  him 

about  the  best  place  to  find  grouse.     That  witness  told 

him  in  the  thickets. 

"  Who  was  present  when  this  conversation  occurred, 
Mr.  Tague?  "  queried  the  coroner. 

"  Nae  one  but  mysel  and  the  young  meister." 

"  Are  you  sure?  " 

"Ah!  a  hand  o'  neighbor  Squire  Landsdowne cam  oop, 
but  on  seein'  Meister  Warren  he  off  wie  hisself." 

Old  Wallie,  in  the  rear,  shook  his  head  with  a  knowing 
look. 

"  What  did  you  know  about  the  man  Lindley?  " 

"  Nothing,  'cept  he  bore  a  bad  name  amang  the  neigh- 
bors," 


34  THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP. 

Mr.  Thorpe  was  allowed  to  ask  a  question: 

"Had  Mr.  Warren  Margate  had  any  difficulty  with  this 
man  Lindley  of  late?  " 

"Aye,  sir;  Mr.  Warren  whipped  him  o'  late,  and 
blacked  his  ee's." 

"  Did  you  ever  hear  Lindley  use  any  threats  against  the 
life  of  young  Margate?  " 

"Nae,  not  mysel,  but  a  young  girrel  said — " 

"Nevermind,  sir,  what  she  said,"  interrupted  Coroner 
Plump,  authoritatively;  "  we  will  listen  to  that  from  her." 

* '  What  time  was  it  when  you  saw  deceased  that 
evening?" 

"  Aboot  eight." 

*  Is  that  all  you  know  ^bout  the  affair?  " 

"  Yees,  sir,"  and  old  Tague  retired. 

Aaron  Wallace  testified  to  finding  tne  body,  the  hand- 
kerchief, the  gun  belonging  to  young  Margate,  and  also 
another  gun  (afterwards  identified  as  belonging  to  Charles 
Landsdowne).  The  circumstances  of  the  hunt  for  the 
body.  How  the  spaniel  followed  the  trail  till  he  brought 
them  to  the  fatal  spot.  A  pin  could  be  heard  if  dropped 
in  the  room  when  old  Wallie  narrated  his  story.  Tears 
welled  up  in  the  honest  old  man's  eyes  when  he  came  to 
bringing  back  the  corpse. 

Archibald  Margate  sat  in  the  adjoining  room.  Lillie, 
her  mother,  and  a  few  friends,  remained  up  stairs. 

The  testimony  of  the  old  gardener,  as  to  finding  the 
corpse,  was  corroborated  by  Albert  Fielding,  son  of  John 
Fielding,  and  another  young  man. 

Harcott,  a  farm  hand  at  the  Hall,  was  asked,  at  Thorpe's 
suggestion,  as  to  the  whereabouts  of  Lindley  at  the  time 
of  the  occurrence  Saturday  morning. 

"  Lindley  and  I  occupied  the  same  room,  but  sleeping 


THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  35 

in  different  beds.  I  noticed  the  night  before,  while  a 
cleaning  young  master's  gun,  he  was  a  long  time  fumbling 
with  it." 

"  Were  you  present  all  the  time  he  was  supposed  to  be 
cleaning  the  gun?  " 

"  No,  sir;  I  went  off  to  my  work." 

"  Did  he  go  out  the  next  morning  with  Charles  Lands- 
downe,  to  shoot?  " 

"  No,  sir,  not  with  him,  but  he  went  towards  the  thicket 
half  an  hour  or  more  before  young  Mr.  Landsdowne 
left  the  house." 

"  What  time  did  Lindley  return  to  the  house?  " 

"  It  was  about  eleven  o'clock." 

"  Did  he  have  any  firearms  with  him?  " 

"No,  sir.  Not  that  I  saw,  but  I  heard  it  said  he  did 
try  to  fix  up  an  old  musket  that  was  in  the  spare  room 
over  the  kitchen  lately." 

"  Did  you  ever  see  Lindley  with  this  old  musket  in  his 
hands?" 

"  Yes,  sir." 

'  •  Did  he  have  the  old  musket  with  him  when  he  went 
towards  the  thicket  that  morning?  " 

"  I  think  so,  but  I  could  not  swear.  I  saw  him  with 
something  in  his  hand,  but  what  it  was  I  could  not  say. 
He  was  quite  a  distance  away  when  I  saw  him." 

"  Did  the  man  return  with  the  gun?  " 

"  No,  sir." 

The  coroner :  "  I  did  not  understand  the  witness  to  say 
it  was  a  gun.  Mr.  Thorpe,  if  permitted  to  conduct  this 
examination,  you  must  follow  the  record." 

"  I  beg  your  honor's  pardon,"  said  Mr.  Thorpe,  gra- 
ciously. 


36  THE   MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP. 

"  Then  did  you  see  him  return  with  the  same  article  h« 
carried  when  he  weiit  out?  " 

"  He  returned  without  it,  sir." 

"  Did  you  ever  hear  this  man,  Lindley,  make  a  threat 
against  the  life  of  Warren  Margate?  " 

At  this  juncture  the  sheriff  entered. 

"Yes,  sir.  He  said  he  would  'stretch  him  out; '  those 
were  the  words  he  used." 

The  coroner  allowed  the  witness  to  retire,  and  called 
Charles  Landsdowne.  (Whisperings  about  the  room.) 
No  answer. 

Mr.  Thorpe  rose:  "  I  would  beg  leave  to  say,  sir,"  ad- 
dressing himself  to  the  coroner,  "  that  Charles  Lands- 
downe is  not  to  be  found.  He  never  returned  from  shoot- 
ing yesterday,  and  while  I  would  very  much  like  to  hear 
his  evidence,  I  must  say  it  seems  impossible  to  find  him." 
(Sensation  among  those  present.) 

Dr.  Dixie,  one  of  the  physicians,  then  gave  his  testi- 
mony, saying  he,  with  his  brother  physicians,  had  made  a 
careful  examination  of  the  wound,  and  agreed  that  death 
must  have  ensued  very  shortly  after  the  shot.  That  the 
jugular  vein  was  severed.  That  several  pickets  of  shot 
and  slugs  had  entered  the  brain.  That  the  size  of  the 
pickels  were  the  same  as  those  found  in  the  loaded  barrel 
of  Charles  Landsdowne's  gun,  which  was  mentioned  by  a 
prior  witness. 

"  One  of  my  learned  brethren  believes  that  the  eye  of 
a  dying  person  will  photograph  the  features  of  the  person 
last  seen,  but  I  must  say  we  cannot  agree  upon  this  sub- 
ject, as  I  claim  that  while  the  eye  may  set  as  a  convex  lens, 
owing  to  its  shape,  its  refractory  power  towards  the  center 
prevents  an  impression  being  retained  but  momentarily, 


THE   MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  37 

and  which  impression  would  pass  away  at  the  same  time 
the  object  was  removed,  like  the  reflection  of  a  mirror." 

Dr.  Small  was  called. 

The  doctor  was  an  exceedingly  eccentric  gentleman,  full 
of  mysterious  stratagems  and  remarkable  theories.  He 
devoted  much  of  his  invaluable  time  to  making  discover- 
ies— that  is,  making  the  attempt.  He  never  did  discover 
anything,  except  that  his  theories  were  strictly  impracti- 
cable. He  hunted  in  the  woods  for  herbs  which  he  boiled 
down  and  experimented  upon  for  weeks,  with  no  benefi- 
cial result.  He  implicitly  believed  that  the  retina  of  the 
human  eye  of  a  person  murdered  would  photograph  the 
person  committing  the  act  of  murder,  and  numerous  other 
as  equally  absurd  theories.  Dr.  Small  was  what  is  com- 
monly called  a  "crank,"  but  being  a  man  of  many  good 
characteristics  otherwise,  he  was  permitted  a  hearing  at 
every  coroner's  inquest,  which  he  would  surely  attend,  if 
possible.  The  Doctor,  being  sworn,  stated  that  he  be- 
lieved his  "  theory,"  as  his  learned  friend  had  designated 
it,  but  not  as  a  theory — as  a  fact,  practicable  beyond  all 
question — and  he  would,  if  time  were  allowed,  prove  his 
assertion  by  the  reproduction  of  the  face  now  photo- 
graphed in  the  eye  of  Warren  Margate. 

The  coroner  objected :  I  cannot  devote  any  time  to  such 
experiments ;  my  duty  is  to  ascertain  the  manner  of  this 
young  gentleman's  death,  and  I  refuse  peremptorily  to 
enter  into  the  discussion. 

The  worthy  coroner's  statement  being  final,  Dr.  Small 
left  the  room,  entered  the  yard  and  was  immediately  sur- 
rounded by  a  number  of  superstitious  listeners  whom  he 
regaled  with  his  sensational  topic. 

After  the  examination  of  several  minor  witnesses,  the 


38  THE   MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP. 

jury  retired.    In  half  an  hour  they  brought  in  the  follow- 
ing verdict : 

We,  the  jury,  find  that  Warren  Margate,  eldest  son  of 
Archibald  Margate,  gentleman  farmer,  residing  near 
Maidestone,  Kent,  came  to  his  death  on  the  5th  day  of 
October,  1876,  by  a  gun-shot  wound  caused  by  Charles 
Landsdowne  or  William  Lindley,or  both,  and  recommend 
that  they  be  held  to  the  next  assizes  for  murder." 

Warrants  for  their  arrest  were  immediately  issued  to 
the  sheriff.  Lillie  Margate,  who  had  walked  down  stairs 
to  procure  a  drink  of  water  for  her  mother,  heard  this  last 
order  of  the  coroner.  She  dropped  the  glass,  and  catch- 
ing the  banisters  managed  to  prevent  herself  from  reel- 
ing over.  Those  in  attendance  soon  dispersed. 

*  *  *  *  *  * 

After  a  short  but  stormy  trip  the  Amazon  floated  up 
the  Delaware  riven  A  brilliant  scene  met  Barrow's  gaze. 
Vessels  gaily  bedecked  with  the  flags  of  all  nations, 
and  Philadelphia  in  all  its  stately  magnificence.  He  was 
on  deck  preparing  some  invoices  for  the  captain  and  felt  a 
cloud  moved  from  his  heart. 

"  I  am  in  a  new  world,  three  thousand  miles  away  from 
the  dreadful  occurrence  in  which  I  am  so  prominently  and 
still  so  innocently  connected,"  he  said,  ruminating. 

The  captain  was  giving  orders  to  the  pilot.  The  sailors, 
always  happy  coming  into  port,  were  singing  their  wild 
cadences,  which  added  additional  harmony  to  the  scene,  as 
the  sails  were  lowered,  the  deck  cleared,  and  the  Amazon 
tied  up  securely  to  the  dock. 

Captain  Merriam,  after  transacting  some  business  con- 
cerning the  vessel,  invited  Darrow  to  go  up  to  the  Expo- 
sition. 

In  this  year,  1876,  the  Centennial  Exposition  was  in 


THE   MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP.  39 

full  blast  in  Philadelphia.  One  of  the  vessel  owners,  Mr. 
Mason,  whom  they  met  at  the  office,  accompanied  them 
as  they  rode  toward  the  ground. 

"  The  first  exposition  of  this  character  was  held,"  said 
Mason,  "  in  France,  in  1798,  at  the  suggestion  of  Marquis 
d'  Avege." 

"  Yes,  the  French  are  undoubtedly  entitled  to  being 
called  the  originators  of  national  fairs,  but  as  an  English- 
man I  must  claim  the  idea  of  world's  fairs  originated  with 
us.  Prince  Albert,  our  Queen's  husband,  propounded  the 
idea  of  holding  universal  exhibitions  in  1850.  This  took 
place  in  Hyde  Park,  London,  in  a  building  called  the 
Crystal  Palace,"  replied  Darrow. 

"  Yes,  my  father  was  there,"  added  Mason. 

"I  'spect  that  was  the  startin'  pint  for  all  the  big 
world's  fairs,"  chimed  in  the  captain;  "  this  Philadelphy 
one's  ben  bruin  since  1870." 

"  The  sum  of  $8,500,000  has  been  raised  to  make  this 
one  a  success,"  said  Mason. 

As  they  entered  the  wonderful  buildings,  Darrow  be- 
came impressed  with  the  enterprise  of  the  American  peo- 
ple. 

They  passed  through  the  main  building,  memorial  hall, 
the  art  gallery,  and  looked  upon  the  vast  collection  oi 
articles  from  all  corners  of  the  earth. 

As  evening  approached,  Mason  left  the  company,  hav- 
ing promised  Captain  Merriam  to  secure  a  situation  for 
young  Darrow. 

*  *  *  #  *  # 

Darrow  soon  found  himself  a  clerk  for  a  large  manu- 
facturing company  whose  goods  were  on  exhibition.  But 
as  days  passed  he  became  convinced  of  the  danger  of 
meeting  some  one  from  Maidestone  or  London,  who  would 


40  THE   MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP. 

identify  him,  as  by  reason  of  his  position  he  was  obliged 
to  resume  citizen's  clothes  in  place  of  his  sailor's  jacket. 

To  his  horror,  one  day,  whom  should  he  behold  walking 
up  the  aisle  in  which  he  was  stationed,  but  Mr.  Big  ley, 
an  intimate  acquaintance  from  Maidestone.  Asking  leave 
of  his  fellow  clerk,  Darrow  retreated  from  his  position. 
Passing  out  through  the  building  by  another  way  he  left 
the  city. 

Next  morning  he  was  in  Washington,  where  he  secured 
work  in  a  freight-house,  rolling  barrels.  Here,  although 
the  work  was  arduous,  he  experienced  safety.  On  Sun- 
days he  strolled  about  the  public  parks.  Once,  at  Arling- 
ton Heights,  he  was  reading  the  inscription  on  one  of  the 
soldier's  graves,  when  a  voice  greeted  him,  which  chilled 
him  to  the  bones.  It  was  that  of  a  merchant  residing  in 
London  who  had  visited  at  Landsdowne  Hall. 

"Did  you  come  from  England,  sir?"  the  merchant 
asked. 

"  Originally  I  did." 

"  Ohl  I  beg  your  pardon,  sir.     Your  name  is — " 

"  James  Darrow." 

"  Ah !  then  I  owe  an  apology,"  replied  the  merchant, 
lifting  his  hat. 

Darrow  walked  leisurely  away,  leaving  the  merchant, 
his  wife  and  daughter,  discussing  this  object  of  interest. 

When  out  of  speaking  distance  Darrow  paused  and 
earnestly  discussed  the  situation  in  his  mind. 

Looking  down  from  the  hill  he  saw  the  grand  old 
building,  the  Capitol ;  the  beautiful  avenues,  the  stately 
homes,  the  rich  foliage,  bright  with  autumnal  tints,  and 
he  longed  for  his  native  land.  There  existed  a  loneliness 
in  his  aching  heart  experienced  only  by  those  who  have 
by  some  necessity  wandered  away  from  the  scenes  of  their 


THE   MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP.  41 

boyhood,  and  the  familiar  and  welcome  faces  of  their 
friends. 

He  knew  to  remain  in  any  public  haunt  for  any  length 
of  time  was  fatal,  so  to  move  from  place  to  place  was  his 
only  hope,  and  by  the  mere  circumstance  of  fortune  never 
meet  those  who  would  recognize  him. 

"  Our  friends.  Oh,  when  dire  misfortune  overtakes  us, 
please  deliver  us  from  our  friends,"  he  said  aloud,  as  he 
turned  down  a  retired  and  shady  street  of  the  capital. 
Getting  his  small  parcel  of  things  together  he  boarded  an 
evening  train  for  the  West. 

As  the  Baltimore  and  Ohio  train  swept  around  the  hills, 
along  the  valleys,  through  tunnels  and  rocky  chasms,  he 
compared  the  ride  with  his  prospective  life.  Many  a  jog, 
many  a  turn.  In  life's  journey  we  must  pass  through  the 
damp  tunnels  of  trouble  as  well  as  jump  the  silver 
streams  of  happiness.  True,  joy  and  sorrow  are  not 
often  found  long  apart,  but  through  some  subtle  and 
mysterious  circumstance  grave  Sorrow  leaves  his  cheerful 
sister,  Joy,  so  far  behind,  she  is  a  long  time  catching  up. 

Looking  out  of  the  car  window,  his  only  comfort  was 
in  the  memory  of  a  pale  face,  which  seemed  to  look  up 
through  the  moonlit  valleys  as  he  half  dozed.  Awakened 
by  the  sudden  stopping  of  the  train  he  thought:  "  There 
is  one  hope.  I  can  some  day  establish  my  innocence  to 
Lillie.  She  will  listen  and  believe.  Bless  her  I  Could 
I  but  look  again  into  those  lovelit  eyes,  my  guiding 
stars,  the  future  would  not  look  so  hopelessly  dark.  As  time 
wore  on,  the  daylight  broke  the  monotony  and  dreariness 
of  a  long  night's  ride,  and  he  found  himself  at  the  rail  way 
station  of  a  busy  manufacturing  town.  Alighting,  he 
made  his  way  very  hurriedly  to  a  small  hotel  near  by. 

He  looked    about    for    work.     But  there    had  been 


42  THE   MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP. 

a  long  strike  at  the  mills.  Idlers  were  assembled 
on  the  streets,  lazily  conversing.  The  Ohio  river  ran 
sluggishly  past.  On  either  side  thereof  were  high  hills, 
the  town  being  built  on  the  bluffs  along  the  river  bank. 
Everything  assumed  the  quietness  of  a  general  holiday. 
"When  the  mills  were  in  operation  the  town  was  a  world 
of  work  and  noise.  Huge  volumes  of  smoke  from 
the  high  chimneys,  together  with  the  forks  of  lurid 
flames  from  the  blast  furnaces  changed  the  place  into  a 
seething  mass  of  mechanism.  The  manufacturing  head- 
quarters of  nails  the  world  over — Wheeling,  West  Vir- 
ginia. 

Darrow  soon  discovered  his  mistake,  as  the  present  was 
no  time  to  secure  work.  Going  from  place  to  place  with 
the  same  result,  "  Nothing,  sir,"  his  scanty  purse  soon 
depleted,  his  prospective  chances  for  obtaining  employ- 
ment became  alarming.  Braving  the  situation,  however, 
he  determinedly  made  another  effort. 

Success  came.  He  obtained  work  moving  in  some  bars 
of  iron  left  outside  one  of  the  mills  at  the  time  of  the 
strike.  He  had  not  been  engaged  long  when  two  or  more 
half  drunken,  surly  strikers,  came  up  and  asked  him 
several  questions.  Paying  no  attention  to  their  demands 
he  continued  his  hard  labor.  Soon  a  stone  was  thrown, 
then  a  large  iron  bolt  dropped  savagely  within  two  feet  of 
him,  evidently  thrown  by  some  passing  striker. 

"  The  foreman  of  the  mill,  passing  by,  explained  to  the 
mob  quickly  gathering:  "Boys,  he  is  only  a  tramp 
working  for  a  shilling  or  two.  Let  him  alone.  He's  only 
taking  in  a  few  bars  left  out  when  the  mill  closed." 

"  Well,  d n  him,"  said  one  semi-drunken  voice,  "  let 

him  hurry  up  or  he'll  get  his  head  knocked  in. ' 

Darrow,  not  accustomed  to  the  full  significance  of  a 


THE   MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP.  43 

strike,  and  surprised  at  this  absurd  condition  of  affairs, 
replied:  "Gentlemen,  I  am  a  stranger  here  trying  to 
work  my  way  along ;  surely  a  poor  fellow  like  me  cannot 
influence  your  strike  unfavorably." 

"Let  the  boy  alone!"  shouted  two  or  three  respectable 
looking  men. 

"  Let  him  alone  and  go  home,  you  fellers,"  shouted  one 
of  the  leaders  of  the  strike. 

The  crowd  soon  dispersed  and  Darrow  toiled  on  with 
his  heavy  load. 


The  Millionaire  Tramp  4. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

A  GEEAT  AMERICAN  TBAMP. 

"  Unpitied,  uncared  for,  he  wanders  alone, 
A  creature  of  God,  forsakan,  unknown." 

Darrow,  having  finished  his  job,  was  enabled  to  pro- 
ceed further  westward.  On  the  second-class  car  beside 
him  sat  an  old  man  whose  wrinkled  face  had  evidently 
seen  better  days.  He  traveled  on  a  pass  issued  by  the  mayoi 
to  rid  the  city  of  a  pauper.  The  aged  mendicant  had 
taken  the  train  supperless  and  was  resting  his  tired  head 
against  the  corner  of  the  hardwood  car.  The  atmosphere 
of  this  coach  was  laden  with  all  the  perfumes  of  a  tramp's 
boarding  house.  It  was  a  second,  third,  fourth  or  fifth-class 
car,  according  to  the  length  of  the  ride  and  the  odor  of  the 
occupants.  Several  smoking,  greasy,  and  half  drunken 
workmen  filled  the  seats. 

"  Well,  indeed,  this  is  rather  crude  company,"  conjec- 
tured Darrow,  as  he  gazed  about  him.  Eather  fancying 
the  profile  of  the  old  man  in  preference  to  the  others,  he 
retained  his  seat. 

"  Old  man,  are  you  going  far?  " 

"Well,  sir,"  raising  his  head  from  its  position  and 
staring  at  Darrow,  "  I  don't  know  that  I  am  going  any- 
where;" and  he  leaned  back  again.  After  several  vain 
attempts  to  draw  him  into  a  conversation,  Darrow  aban- 
doned the  attempt. 

As  an  Englishman  is  rarely  found  far  from  lunch,  Dar- 


THE  MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP.  45 

row  pu.Ued  scientifically  from  his  outside  pocket  half  a 
dozen  ham  sandwiches.  The  old  companion  sat  upright 
and  looked  at  them  with  a  hungry  and  wistful  stare. 

u  You've  come  prepared, "  he  said  sadly,  as  his  large 
eyes  wandered  from  the  edibles  to  Darrow's  pleasant  face. 

"Have  one,  old  fellow?" 

"Thanks,  sir;  thanks,  sir,  I'm  in  luck;  "  as  he  opened 
his  long  bony  fingers  to  accept  the  gift. 

Dividing  his  meal  equally,  another  peculiar  phase  of  a 
well-bred  Englishman,  Darrow  sat  and  half  enjoyed  the 
frugal  supper  with  his  new-found  friend. 

"  What  is  your  business,  my  old  sir?  "  asked  Darrow. 

"  My  business?  Ah!  ha!  "  and  he  laughed  an  old-time 
laugh,  shorn  of  its  real  merriment. 

"  I'm  one  of  them. "   He  knowingly  winked  at  Darrow. 

"  One  of  what?    I  do  not  comprehend." 

Leaning  his  poor  old  head  up  to  Darrow  he  whis  pered 
so  as  not  to  be  overheard  by  those  in  the  adjacent  seats, 
"  I'm  a  tramp !  That's  all,  sir. " 

The  words  jarred  with  peculiar  significance  on  Darrow's 
ear. 

"  A  tramp,  old  man?  How  long  have  you  been  en. 
gaged  in  this  worldly  occupation?" 

"Forty  years!" 

Then  the  aged  pauper,  gaining  confidence  by  the  relish 
of  the  sandwiches,  grew  talkative,  giving  a  brief  history  of 
his  checkered  life. 

THE  TRAMP'S  STORY. 

"  I  was  born  in  New  England  sixty-three  years  ago ;  ed- 
ucated for  the  ministry  when  about  twenty- four,  but  soon 
after  became  dissipated  and  squandered  everything  mj 
kind  old  father  gave  me." 


46  THE   MILLIONAIRE  TKAMP. 

As  Darrow  looked  into  his  face  he  noticed  a  strange 
expression  upon  his  wrinkled  features. 

"  I  left  college  and  led  for  years  a  roving  life.  By  my 
actions  I  soon  discouraged  my  parents  from  any  further 
attempt  to  reclaim  me. 

"  I  became  a  wanderer,  having  tried  hundreds  of  ways 
of  obtaining  employment.  I  have  traversed  the  globe, 
been  in  wars,  worked  at  many  trades  during  my  younger 
days,  but  latterly  I  have  knocked  about  alone,  forsaken, 
a  tired  old  tramp.  My  aching  bones  can  find  no  rest. 

"  I  am  moved  about  from  place  to  place.  '  Move  on,  old 
man!'  are  my  instructions.  I  have  obeyed  them,  God 
knows,  for  twenty  years.  Village  to  village,  town  to 
town,  city  to  city,  footsore  and  forlorn.  The  same  old 
cry  comes  alike  from  the  officer  of  the  law,  the  merchant, 
the  capitalist,  the  mechanic  or  the  mayor:  'Move  on! 
Move  on !  Old  man,  move  on !'" 

Growing  intensely  interested  in  this  wretched  history 
Darrow  besought  his  companion  to  tell  him  more. 

"  I  have  been  all  through  my  life  an  honest  man;  that 
is,  I  have  never  committed  a  theft,"  continued  the  tramp; 
never  to  my  knowledge  have  I  done  injury  to  a  living 
soul." 

Darrow  experienced  a  compassion  for  his  old  friend 
awakening  in  his  breast  as  he  felt  the  tears  spring  to  his 
eyes. 

"Sorely  have  I  been  tempted  to  commit  crime  in  my 
dire  necessity  so  as  to  secure  food  and  shelter,  even  within 
the  walls  of  a  prison ;  but  when  it  came  to  the  committal 
of  the  act,  I  shrank  from  it  as  I  would  from  an  adder.  In 
fact,  it  does  not  run  in  our  family  blood  to  steal."  He 
smiled  triumphantly. 

"  The  times  are  now  hard,  'tis  true.    This  is  a  period  of 


THE  MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP.  47 

/ 

the  world's  history  when  millionairs  become  paupers;  when 
the  tide  of  adversity  runs  against  the  rich  as  well  as  poor. 
I  am  no  worse  off',  never  having  had  anything,  than  the 
man  whose  income  of  hundreds  of  thousands  has  been  de- 
pleted to  a  pittance." 

"Ah!  I  see,  my  dear  old  friend,  you  are  quite  a  philoso- 
pher respecting  your  lot,"  remarked  Darrow. 

Not  having  secured  so  attentive  an  audience  for  many 
years,  the  old  gentleman  became  excited  at  Darrow's 
complimentary  remark  and  exclaimed,  "  There  were  times 
when  I  rather  enjoyed  myself  strolling  about  the  country 
breathing  the  fresh  air,  scenting  the  clover  from  the  mead- 
ows, and  sleeping  soundly  under  the  pine  trees.  Why, 
sir,  there  is  a  world  of  freedom  in  certain  phases  of  a  tramp's 
life  in  summer,  but  when  winter  comes,  cold,  bitter  win- 
ter— "  here  he  drew  up  his  rheumatic  limbs  and  yawned, 
"  ah!  sir,  that  is  what's  hard  on  us." 

"  What  could  have  reduced  you,  a  man  of  intelligence 
and  education,  to  such  an  unfortunate  condition?  " 

"  The  same  old  cause,  my  boy,  recklessness  and  care- 
lessness." 

"  Do  you  drink?  "  inquired  Darrow. 

"  Well,  a  little.  Well,  to  speak  the  truth  to  you,  I 
have  drunk  too  much,  entirely  too  much."  And  again 
"ihe  old  man  pulled  himself  out  for  another  yawn. 

"  For  forty  years  you  have  led  this  life?  "  asked  Darrow, 
"What  a  long  line  of  misery  the  debauched  old  wretch 
has  wound  round  his  creaking  form." 

"  I  have  tried,"  he  continued,  "  to  avoid  this  thing  al- 
together; at  times  I  have  succeeded,  but,  my  God,  sir,  no 
man  knows  but  one  of  experience,  the  power  required  to 
refrain." 


48  THE  JITLLIONAIRE  TKAMP. 

"  I  was  sleeping  in  a  barn  last  winter  by  the  side  of  a 
horse  "  — 

* '  What !  Do  you  mean  it?  "  ejaculated  Darrow,  horri- 
fied ;  "  beside  a  horse?  " 

"  Why  yes,  sir,  that  waa  a  comfortable  berth  for  me 
and  I  thanked  the  owner  of  the  horse  sincerely. " 

"  Go  on,"  said  Darrow,  half  angrily,  the  while  looking 
searchingly  into  his  face,  doubting  the  veracity  of  his 
statement. 

"  Yes,  sir,"  he  continued,  "  and  it  was  far  warmer  than 
many  a  place  I've  slept  in  during  my  life." 

"  Go  on,"  said  Darrow,  listening  carefully,  fearing  he 
should  lose  a  word. 

"  One  day  I  had  a  great  temptation.  The  gentleman 
who  owned  the  horse  sent  me  to  collect  a  bill — it  was  ten 
dollars."  And  the  old  tramp  momentarily  assumed  an  air 
of  importance  at  having  such  vast  confidence  placed  in  him. 

"  He  gave  me  a  receipted  bill.  I  had  not  had  a  drink 
for  two  days."  This  also  was  said  rather  triumphantly. 

"  I  tell  you  there  was  a  gnawing  down  here,"  placing  his 
bony  hand  upon  his  stomach. 

"  I  went  straight  to  the  office  of  the  man  who  owed  the 
bill.  He  paid  it  promptly." 

"  Well?  "  said  Darrow. 

' '  Walking  back  I  had  to  pass  three  saloons.  Heaven 
on  earth!  I  skipped  the  first  two.  Do  you  believe  me, 
I  was  an  hour  passing  the  third.  I  had  that  money.  It 
was  a  paper  ten.  It  weighed  a  ton.  I  held  on  to  the 
fence.  I  scratched  till  the  nails  on  my  right  hand  were 
sore.  I  held  the  ten  dollar  note  in  my  left  hand,  tightly, 
thus ;  "  and  he  clenched  his  poor  thin  fist  and  held  it  trem- 
blingly before  Darrow's  face.  "  I  felt  a  supernatural 
power  draw  me  towards  that  saloon  door.  Tiie  perspira- 


THE  MILLIONAIKE   TKAMP.  49 

tion  fell  thick  and  fast  from  me.  I  gasped  for  air.  I 
looked  at  my  left  hand ;  it  was  as  pale  as  snow,  and  seemed 
to  grin  at,  and  deride  me.  I  became  faint,  sat  down  by 
the  fence  and  rested.  For  a  long  time,  nearly  an  hour, 
I  was  riveted  to  the  spot.  My  God!  sir,  in  that  hour 
what  I  suffered.  All  the  torments  of  hell  passed  in  pan- 
oramic procession  before  me.  Fiends  and  imps  mocked 
me,  coaxed  me,  ridiculed  me,  but  stealing  did  not  run  in 
my  blood.  I  arose,  and  pulling  myself  along  the  fence, 
inch  by  inch,  I  got  back." 

"What  did  the  man  say?"  inquired  Darrow. 

"He  was  mad  at  my  delay.  He  swore  at  me,  called  me 
a  d d  old  fraud,  but  gave  me  fifty  cents." 

"  What  did  you  do  with  that?  " 

"  I  ran  like  a  deer  to  the  nearest  saloon  and  drank  so 
eagerly  that  the  barkeeper  remarked:  'You  old  cuss, 
you  must  have  been  tied  up  in  jail  for  thirty  days.' " 

"  And  so  your  whole  life  has  been  wrecked  through 
this  fault?  " 

4  'That's  about  it.  I  have  seen  friend  after  friend  depart. 
Have  lost  five  hundred  situations.  Have  been  kicked  out 
of  houses,  barns  and  pig-stys.  I  have  not  been  fit  company 
for  hogs  and  cattle  for  over  twenty  years — twenty  years ;  " 
and  the  aged  tramp  held  down  his  trembling  head  in  sor- 
row. 

"Merciful  heaven  I  say  no  more,"  pleaded  Darrow, 
who,  leaning  his  head  over  the  back  of  the  seat  in  front 
soon  fell  into  a  troubled  sleep. 

It  was  gray  dawn  when  the  train  came  whistling  and 
puffing  into  the  station  at  Chicago,  the  wonderful  me- 
tropolis whose  outstretched  arms  are  open  to  embrace  the 
refugees  and  wayward  wanderers  from  foreign  and  do- 
mestic climes. 


50  THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP. 

"Old  Tom"  had  many  a  time  come  back  to  this 
bustling  place  to  beg  and  tramp  about. 

"  If  you  can  assure  me  you  will  only  drink  when  I 
allow  you,"  said  Darrow,  to  his  associate,  "  I  will  get 
work  and  help  you." 

"God  bless  you,  sir!  I  know  you  are  good.  I  will 
promise,  and  I  will  choke  to  death  before  I  break  my 
promise  to  you." 

Old  Tom  grasped  Darrow's  hand  as  he  spoke,  and  they 
turned  into  a  cheap  lodging-house. 


CHAPTER   VIII. 

THE     "  FLO8OPHER." 

"Adversity's  sweet  milk— Philosophy.** 

Old  Tom  had  an  acquaintance,  a  fellow  tramp,  with 
whom  he  had  often  strolled  about  the  parks  and  loitered 
by  the  lake  upon  sunny  days.  He  was  known  among  the 
cheap  lodging  dives,  police  stations,  and  his  fellow  pau- 
pers, as  "  de  Flosopher." 

He  was  by  no  means  the  physical  wreck  one  would  ex- 
pect from  twenty  years'  exposure  to  starvation  and 
drunken  debauchery.  His  eye  was  clear  and  bright  except 
when  emerging  from  a  prolonged  spree.  His  skin  was 
fair  and  his  muscles  well  developed.  This  individual 
was  the  intellectual  peer  of  the  noted  politicians  of  the  day. 
A  thorough  scholar,  fluent  speaker,  and  one  of  the  finest 
penmen  to  be  found.  In  an  Eastern  city,  twenty  years 
before  the  present  writing,  he  was  a  young  journalist  of 
great  promise.  Having  a  thorough  collegiate  educa- 
tion, and  having  matriculated  at  a  leading  university, 
ranking  the  highest  in  mathematics,  but  one,  since  the 
foundation  of  the  institution,  he  was  looked  upon  by 
his  acquaintances  as  a  paragon  of  promise. 

The  Philosopher,  meeting  Old  Tom  and  Darrow  thia 
oalm  Sunday  morning  when  they  were  about  to  take  their 
accustomed  walk,  to  see  white-sailed  ships  come  and  go, 
begged  leave  to  accompany  them. 


52  THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP. 

Sitting  down  on  a  timber  pile  they  enjoyed  the  warm 
and  welcome  sun,  which  had  risen  high  in  the  heavens. 

The  Philosopher  opened  the  conversation,  thus: 

"What  do  you  think  of  the  new  administration,  Tom?  " 

Old  Tom,  who  was  not  at  all  interested  in  politics,  and 
suffering  from  a  backache,  made  no  reply,  but  looked 
languidly  up  at  Darrow  to  answer. 

"I  must  admit,"  said  Darrow,  who  took  Tom's  hint, 
"  that  American  politics  are  new  to  me,  being  a  foreigner. 
But  I  believe,  from  all  I  can  see  and  learn,  the  country  seems 
to  be  in  an  excellent  state  of  political  harmony  at  present." 

"  I  am  a  free  trader,"  said  the  Philosopher,  evidently 
proposing  to  draw  the  stranger  into  a  conversation. 

Old  Tom  smiled  as  he  scanned  the  dilapidated  wardrobe 
of  the  philosophical  gentleman. 

"Indeed!"  replied  Darrow. 

"  Yes,  sir.  At  one  time  in  the  history  of  this  country 
I  was  a  sturdy  protectionist,  but  from  a  careful  study  of 
the  situation,  and  from  the  fact  that  the  word  free  trade 
now  expresses  the  most  important  and  fundamental  truth 
in  political  economy,  I  have  changed  my  views." 

Old  Tom  smiled  again  with  an  effort. 

"  Then,  Mr.  Philosopher,"  said  Darrow,  "  you  expect 
to  make  political  economy  an  exact  science?  But  is  it  not 
also  a  fact  that  there  are  thousands  of  learned  men  who 
have  made  protection  a  study,  who  will  offer  apparently 
sound  reasoning  that  free  trade  would  be  detrimental  to 
the  interests  of  this  country?  " 

"  No  doubt  of  it.  Great  minds  disagree.  And  it  is 
also  a  fact  that  certain  modes  of  trade  and  legal  enact- 
ments, which  have  been  in  force  for  years,  and  which  were 
believed  necessary  to  the  welfare  of  the  country,  a  change 
having  been  made  in  them  the  contrary  has  been  proven. 


THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  53 

It  is  necessary  to  keep  this  distinction  in  view,"  said  the 
philosopher  tramp,  placing  one  dirty  hand  upon  the  other, 
"  because  there  are  many  laws  not  contrary  to  the  spirit 
of  free  trade  which  interfere  with  buying  and  selling ;  for 
instance,  it  is  unlawful  to  deal  in  slaves,  because  we  do 
not  acknowledge  the  right  of  one  human  being  to  be  the 
owner  of  another." 

"  There  have  been  many  attempts  made  by  governments 
to  regulate  trade,"  said  Darrow,  "  but  their  success 
has  been  questionable." 

"  Yes,"  responded  the  Philosopher,  eagerly,  glad  of  a 
chance  for  discussion. 

"  These  attempts  are  divided  into  two  great  classes : 
one  prohibiting  the  exportation  of  commodities,  the 
other  encouraging  exportation  and  prohibiting  or  discour- 
aging importation.  The  former  was  the  old  rule  in  En- 
gland." 

"Your  country,  is  it  not?"  the  tramp  respectfully 
asked,  eyeing  Darrow. 

"  You  are  right,  sir,"  Darrow  replied,  wondering  at 
the  man's  perception. 

"Yes,  it  was  also  the  rule  in  other  countries,"  the 
Philosopher  continued.  "  England  yielded  to  its  converse 
and  it  is  maintained  there  now  that  exportation  is  the 
source  of  wealth,  and  importation  is  a  wasting  of  a  na- 
tion's substance.  See?  If  we  pay  for  the  goods  we  im- 
port by  bills  of  exchange,  these  bills  represent  goods  ex- 
ported, otherwise  they  would  be  paid.  If  we  pay  for 
goods  in  bullion  it  is  the  same  thing.  You  may  look  at 
this  question  from  two  standpoints;  either  may  appear 
right,  but  does  it  not  appear  to  you  that  in  a  country 
like  this,  which  can  manufacture  every  possible  species  of 
merchandise,  that  free  trade  would  be  beneficial?  5" 


54  THE   MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP. 

Darrow  scanned  the  Philosopher,  whose  great  toe  pro- 
truded from  his  right  shoe,  while  his  left  foot  was  encased 
in  a  top  boot  of  uncertain  age  and  style. 

Old  Tom  had  stretched  out  on  a  board  and  had  fallen 
into  a  doze  at  this,  to  him,  exceedingly  uninteresting  con- 
versation. 

"This  is  becoming  a  great  manufacturing  country," 
said  Darrow,  "  and  with  the  inventive  ingenuity  of  its  cit- 
izens, and  ability  to  secure  unlimited  labor  at  a  low  price, 
it  must  become  wonderfully  rich." 

"  Oh,  yes;  rich  !  But  few  people  know,  or  apparently 
care  to  investigate,  the  two  growing  evils  that  will,  in 
from  fifty  to  one  hundred  years,  wipe  this  country  from 
the  face  of  the  earth,"  said  the  Philosopher,  pushing  one 
hand  through  the  bottom  of  his  coat  pocket. 

"  What  are  they?"  Darrow  asked,  surveying  this  queer 
individual  again. 

"Oh!  don't  you  know?  Why,  whisky  and  politics, 
or  a  mixture  of  both." 

"  Then  you  don't  believe  in  whisky?  "  said  Darrow, 
rather  sarcastically. 

"No;  it  is,  in  my  mind,  the  great  national  curse  and 
question  of  the  day,  and  I  assert,"  said  the  tramp,  earnestly, 
as  he  shifted  his  position  on  the  rough  board,  "  that  the 
Americans,  as  a  race,  will  dwindle  down  to  puny  and  insig- 
nificant beings  unless  some  great  change  is  made  in  the  next 
five  or  ten  generations.  The  controlling  power  of  this 
terrible  foe  is  in  with  the  enemy.  The  saloon  and  whisky 
element  in  the  United  States  is  fast  obtaining  power  over 
the  church  and  state.  The  larger  cities  are  all  now  cap- 
tured and  in  the  hands  of  thieves  and  whisky  pirates. 
The  aldermen  and  all  manner  of  small  politicians  are  con- 
trolled by  the  whisky  element.  Large  cities  are  plun- 


THE   MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  55 

dered  and  taxed  to  keep  this  piratical  gang  in  power,  and 
the  country  generally  is  fast  losing  its  grip  on  law  and 
order." 

"  Why,  you  surprise  me,"  said  Darrow,  "  such  a  state 
of  affairs  does  not  seem  to  exist  to  the  casual  observer 
passing  through;  on  the  other  hand,  prosperity,  virtue 
and  contentment  seem  to  reign  throughout  the  land/' 

"  My  friend,"  said  the  tramp,  "  you  are  innocent.  You 
have  not  had  occasion  to  investigate  this  matter  as  I  have. 
Here;  look  at  me.  Look  at  my  condition.  I  am  a  man  of 
good  birth,  good  education,  able-bodied  and  willing  to 
work.  Look  at  my  life  for  twenty  years  past.  I  tell  you 
if  there  is  a  God  in  heaven  he  must  have  lost  all  inter- 
est in  men  of  my  stamp." 

The  Philosopher  was  now  standing  up  and  had  raised 
his  right  hand  eloquently  towards  the  sky. 

"  Why,  you  must  blame  no  one  but  yourself,  my  poor 
friend,"  said  Darrow,  rebuking  him. 

"  That  is  very  well  to  say,  and  perhaps  right.  You 
think  I  don't  want  to  reform,  and  don't  want  to  work. 
That  I  am  lazy  and  good  for  nothing.  Well,  in  some  re- 
spects you  are  correct  in  your  surmise,  but  listen;  let  me 
picture  a  little  of  my  past  to  your  mind. 

"  I  have  worked  for  five  years  in  a  slaughter  house  at 
the  stock  yards  up  to  my  ankles  in  blood,  sticking  pigs ; 
worked  with  the  lowest  specimens  of  mankind;  slept 
with  men  who  are  strangers  to  cleanliness ;  drank  beer  and 
debauched  with  men  who  would  stab  you  to  death  for  one 
dollar.  I  have  done  this  because  my  sense  of  pride  would 
not  allow  me  to  carry  my  drunkenness  and  my  disgust- 
ing appearance  among  men  with  whom  I  should  associate. 
I  used  to  reform  once  every  three  months ;  I  woulc*  soon 
be  led  back  to  my  old  habit.  Every  election,  every  public 


56  THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP. 

holiday,  every  Christmas,  every  New  Year,  everyday  that 
would  bring  to  me  pleasant  recollections,  would  prove  my 
downfall.  After  fighting  this  thing  for  many  years  I  gave 
up." 

"Why  did  you  not  join  some  church  society,  or  become 
acquainted  with  some  good  person  who  would  assist  you?  " 

"  Oh,  that  may  do  for  some,  but  not  for  me.  I  presume 
it  is  hereditary.  Churches,  I  have  no  love  for.  The  aris- 
tocratic members  of  our  great  churches  are  cold  and  ego- 
tistical. Churches  have  no  use  for  poverty-stricken 
wretches  like  me.  Good  person  !  Why,  I  have  been 
helped  by  hundreds ;  I  have  been  sent  to  inebriate  asylums ; 
kept  confined  in  prison  hundreds  of  times.  I  know  what 
is  right  and  just  as  well  as  any  man  living.  I  blame  no 
ane.  I  live  on  year  after  year  the  same.  The  same ! " 

"It  is  terrible,  indeed,  and  so  strange!  I  never  heard 
of  such  a  desperate  case.  How  could  such  a  clear  mind 
become  so  low?  "  said  Darrow.  "  Do  you  never  expect  to 
get  out  of  this  horrible  rut;  this  wretched  manner  of 
life?" 

"  That  is  a  question  I  myself  have  often  tried  to  solve.  I 
have  awakened  in  the  morning  full  of  ambition,  determined 
to  make  a  change ;  and  I  would  succeed.  I  got  so  far  in 
my  resolution  one  time  that  I  became  foreman  in  a  fac- 
tory. Then  I  became  book-keeper  and  manager  of  the 
office.  I  had  saved  up  over  a  thousand  dollars.  One 
night  I  met  an  old  companion ;  he  coaxed  me  into  a  saloon. 
The  same  story .  The  keeper  of  the  place  was  an  alder- 
man ;  a  great  democratic  politician ;  now  he  is  running  for 
congress;  ' The  workingman's  friend! '  "  the  tramp  hissed 
through  his  teeth,  sarcastically.  "  This  ruler  of  our  city 
persuaded  me,  taunted  me,  and  then  dared  me  to  take  a 
drink.  Next  day  I  lost  my  position.  In  two  weeks  I 


THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  57 

lost  every  cent  I  had,  and  was  a  raving  sot  in  the  city 
Bridewell.  I  have  now  settled  down  to  the  philosophical 
life  you  see.  I  know  there  is  no  hope,  and  I  will  go  on 
like  Old  Tom  there  to  the  end." 

Old  Tom  roused  at  the  mention  of  his  name,  and  looked 
up,  then  fell  back  again  into  a  sleep. 

"  Then  you  consider  yourself  past  redemption  en- 
tirely?" said  Darrow,  earnestly. 

"  Yes,  most  assuredly  so.  If  you  were  to  lock  me  up 
for  thirty  days,  behind  bars,  as  the  case  has  been,  on  the 
day  I  gained  my  liberty,  I  would,  perhaps,  resolve  to 
drink  no  more.  I  might  fight  against  this  feeling  for  one 
day  or  two ;  the  third  I  would  give  way  to  the  craving  and 
would  beg  a  drink.  I  tell  you  it  is  all  up  with  our  old 
friend  and  me;  we  are  past  the  lecture-course  days,  and 
have  settled  down  to  that  condition  of  life  where  the  in- 
ward promptings  of  the  conscience  have  lost  their  effect. 
For  your  kindness  in  listening  to  me  I  am  indeed 
grateful ;  but  just  now  I  feel  the  craving  coming  on  and 
must  leave.  I  did  a  job  yesterday  Id'  that  gentleman," 
the  Philosopher  said,  ironically,  "  ddeading  county  com- 
missioner," and  here  the  tramp  pointed  to  a  low  groggery 
back  of  the  lumber  pile,  near  the  dock. 

"  Indeed  I  "  said  Darrow.     "  What  was  it?  " 

"  I  cleaned  out  his  cesspool.  He  paid  me  fifty  cents 
and  promised  me  one  drink  per  day  for  one  week." 

"  Generous  and  noble  man!"  exclaimed  Old  Tom,  who 
had  risen  to  a  sitting  posture.  "  A  lucky  job,  Philosopher, 
wasn't  it?"  and  Old  Tom  looked  thirsty  at  the  thought. 

The  tramp  raised  his  rimless  hat  and  hastened  away. 

"  Tom,  would  it  kill  you  to  entirely  stop  drinking?" 
said  Darrow,  turning  to  his  old  friend. 

"  I  think  so,  my  dear  boy,  but  I  will  do  as  I  said,  Mr. 


58  THE  MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP. 

Darrow.  I'll  choke  to  death  unless  you  allow  ine  one," 
Old  Tom  said,  resignedly. 

"  I  will  do  what  is  right,  won't  I?  You  are  not  half  so 
badly  off  as  the  Philosopher,  Tom,  are  you?"  and  Darrow 
looked  at  the  retreating  figure  of  that  peculiar  individ- 
ual. 

'  'Ah,  no.  I  have  a  friend,  a  kind,  good  friend,  and  the 
Philosopher  has  none." 

Darrow  helped  the  old  man  limp  slowly  towards  his 
home  and  supper. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

FORTUNE     SMILES. 

"  Good  fortune  and  bad  are  equally  necessary  to  man,  to  fit  him  to  meet  the 
contingencies  of  this  life." 

The  second  Sunday  after  the  coroner's  inquest,  Lillie 
Margate,  clad  in  deep  mourning  and  heavily  veiled,  at- 
tended services  in  St.  Mark's.  Her  mother,  ill  since  the 
recent  tragedy,  remained  at  home. 

The  always  impressive  litany  seemed  to  Lillie  this 
Sunday  to  be  doubly  so. 

"  We  beseech  thee  to  hear  us,  good  Lord,"  she  respond- 
ed to  a  section  of  the  solemn  prayer,  exceedingly  appro- 
priate in  her  affliction.  Her  brother  and  he  whom  she  be- 
lieved she  loved,  both  gone.  Her  conscience  told  her  she 
could  do  nothing  for  the  dead,  but  she  could  pray  for  the 
living.  She  was  thinking  of  the  face  of  an  enemy — 
one  whom  she  had  been  taught  to  hate,  but,  contrarily, 
was  learning  to  love.  That  face  was  gone,  perhaps  for- 
ever. Gone  from  the  tall,  old-fashioned  pew.  Burning 
tears  welled  up  in  her  beautiful  eyes,  and  she  fervently 
prayed  for  light. 

"Teach  me  to  reason,  OLord!  Is  it  human  reason- 
ing that  a  noble-minded  man,  with  all  the  generous  im- 
pulses of  humanity,  with  honesty  and  kindness  beaming 
forth  from  his  face,  could  commit  such  a  dastardly 
crime?  Then  nothing  is  safe:  nothing  is  right."  She 
prayed  a'  in  for  an  answer,  and  as  Lillie  arose  from  her 

The  Millionaire  Tranf  B 


60  THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP. 

knees  a  load  had  risen  from  her  heart,  and  as  the  tones  of 
the  organ  dismissed  the  congregation  on  that  bright 
Autumn  Sunday,  and  she  passed  down  the  aisle,  she  ex- 
perienced a  singular  relief,  and  such  happiness  came  over 
her  as  she  had  not  known  since  the  pleasant  hours  prior  to 
poor  Warren's  fate. 

From  thit  hour  the  question  of  Charles  Landsdowne's 
guilt  was  determined.  He  'was  not  guilty. 

"  Now,"  she  said,  and  the  lovely  young  girl  had  a  will 
of  her  own,  "  I  will  spend  years  to  save  Charles  from  this 
terrible  charge.  Poor  Charles!"  she  sighed,  and  when  a 
girl  pities  she  half  loves.  "  My  darling !"  she  whispered, 
and  then  the  tears  did  indeed  come,  but  they  were  the 
transparent  tears  of  joy.  "  I  am  sure  I  must  love  him." 
She  was  driving  home  in  the  family  carriage  alone. 

There  are  times  in  the  life  of  every  one  when  they  are 
in  some  woful  distress  over  the  result  of  something  that 
happened,  or  it  may  be  caused  by  some  apprehension  of 
disaster.  This  feeling  hangs  like  a  pall  over  the  mind. 
At  a  given  time,  a  sudden  thought,  an  impulse,  an  occur- 
rence, or  whatever  it  may  be  called,  the  shadow  vanishes. 
The  heart  feels  relieved,  the  brain  clear,  and  no  amount 
of  brooding  over  the  same  supposed  trouble  will  bring 
back  the  shadow  again.  It  will  be  afterwards  ascertained 
that  the  suspicion  which  caused  the  nightmare  was  un- 
founded. On  the  other  hand,  should  it  be  proved  after- 
wards that  there  was  cause  for  this  apprehensiveness,  the 
mysterious  incubus  had  never  lifted. 

Sailors'  wives,  who  live  along  the  rocky  coasts  by  the 
sea,  frequently  experience  this  portentous  awe  upon  the 
approach  of  a  storm.  After  the  ocean  has  calmed  down, 
if  they  become  light-hearted  and  gay,  they  know  that 
their  Jack  is  safe.  If  not,  the  pale,  sad  face  of  „.  :  patient, 


THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  61 

faithful  wife,  her  reticence  and  retirement,  tell  the  neigh- 
boring women  of  her  kind,  that  Annie  may  soon  have 
sad,  sad  news. 

When  President  Garfield  lingered  several  long  weeks 
under  the  shadow  of  the  grim  visitor,  and  the  honest 
prayers  of  fifty  million  souls  soared  to  the  realm  above, 
the  grandest  tribute  offered  to  the  Almighty  since  the 
world  began,  the  suspense  of  the  nation  remained,  the 
Allwise  Being  denied  the  application. 

At  any  rate,  some  strange,  magnetic  influence  seems 
to  pass  from  one  to  another  at  times,  affecting  a  church 
full  of  people,  a  hall  full  of  patriots,  or  a  nation  alike, 
for  when  Lillie  Margate  that  day  passed  out  of  the  church 
door,  she  heard  many  people  whispering  about  the  "  hor- 
rible affair  at  Margate's." 

She  overheard  one  aged,  white  haired  gentleman,  state 
emphatically:  "Tush  I  tush!  I  will  never  believe  it, 
never  in  the  world.  Landsdowne's  son  is  as  innocent  as 
the  child  unborn." 

She  overheard  one  gossiping  old  maid  who,  for  forty 
years,  had  been  the  reigning  terror  of  the  congregation ; 
a  believer  in  all  manner  of  signs  and  wonders,  also  every 
conceivable  superstition  invented  since  the  days  of  the 
flood,  say: 

"No,  indeed,  Charles  is  innocent.  He  was  in  my  class 
for  two  years.  A  darling  boy.  They'll  find  it  out ;  they'll 
find  it  out.  Wait  till  the  fall  of  next  year,  only  wait." 

This  last  eavesdrop  influenced  poor  Lillie  greatly  and 
favorably,  and  whether  it  was  occasioned  by  the  power 
of  prayer,  or  that  mighty,  invisible  influence,  truth,  or 
the  spiritual  form  of  Warren  Margate  whispering  in  the 
ears  of  church  goers,  we  have  no  means  of  ascertaining. 
However,  it  was  an  undisputable  fact  that  every  one  who 


62  THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP. 

had  given  the  subject  of  Warren  Margate's  murder  a 
thought  had  gone  to  their  homes  that  day  firm  in  the  con- 
viction that  Warren  was  not  slain  by  Charles  Landsdowne, 
the  leading  convert  being  the  sweet  girl,  who  from  that 
day  abandoned  her  gloominess  and  became  once  more  her- 
self. 

Lillie  now  longed  for  the  time  when  she  could  set  out 
in  search  of  evidence  pertaining  to  Charles'  innocence. 
Although  she  made  her  mother  her  confidante  in  all  matters 
connected  with  her  social  life,  this  one  secret,  her  undying 
admiration  for  the  Squire's  son,  was  hidden  from  the 
world  in  her  pure  heart.  Ambition  may  be  fed  and  satis- 
fied for  a  time  with  patience,  but  sooner  or  later  it  will 
make  a  brave  attempt  to  consummate  its  desire.  Lillie 
had  never  deceived  her  mother,  but  she  felt  that  she  must 
clear  up  the  mysterious  murder  of  her  brother,  and  dem- 
onstrate to  the  world  that  Charles  Landsdowne  was  inno- 
cent. She  wiould  by  doing  this  accomplish  a  great  achieve- 
ment, and  when  a  woman  makes  up  her  mind  that  a  just 
person,  especially  one  whom  she  loves  or  highly  esteems, 
is  accused  unjustly,  she  will  move  the  earth  to  establish 
that  fact. 

Miss  Margate  had  a  young  lady  friend  in  Chatham  who 
had  invited  her  to  attend  a  church  sociable  to  be  held  at 
the  magnificent  residence  of  her  father,  Mr.  Woodruff. 

As  chance  would  have  it,  this  gentleman  was  part 
owner  of  the  Amazon,  the  very  vess  >1  in  which  Lands- 
downe sailed  to  America.  Mr.  Woodruff  was  looking  up 
some  correspondence  in  relation  to  this  vessel,  and 
laughing  heartily  over  the  peculiarities  of  its  Yankee 
captain. 

"Here,  girls,  let  me  read  this  to  you,"  he  said,  as  Belle 
and  Lillie  entered  his  office.  "  I  will  read  the  postscript, 


THE   MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP.  63 

which  is  a  fair  sample:  '  If  it  hadn't  ben  for  that  peart 
Englishman  I  picked  up  in  the  docks  the  day  I  left,  we'd 
a  had  a  goldarned  nice  time  a  gettin'  them  Brittaner  goods 
through  the  customs.  By  jingo,  they  wanted  to  charge 
the  value  of  the  hull  vessel.  This  young  feller  was  smarter 
than  chain  lightnin'  and  the  way  he  flopped  them  fellers 
over  on  prices  was  immense.  I'll  be  blowed  if  ever  I'll 
call  Englishmen  green  eny  more.  He  saved  us  a  heap  o' 
trouble.  He  was  one  of  those  healthy,  innocent  lookin' 
critters  as  would  make  a  man  b'lieve  enything.  Bully  for 
the  raw  recruit.' ' 

"This  captain,  although  illiterate,  is  a  mighty  good 
seaman  and  a  fine  fellow,"  said  Mr.  Woodruff,  folding  up 
the  letter. 

"  What  day  did  this  boat  leave  Chatham?  "  Lillie  re- 
plied, indifferently. 

"  September  18th." 

Lillie  turned  a  little  pale.  "  The  very  date,"  she 
whispered  to  herself.  "  Honest  face.  It  may  be  he." 

Time  passed  on,  and  Lillie,  with  this  slight  clew,  de- 
cided to  visit  America  as  soon  as  she  could.  She  never 
breathed  her  determination  to  a  soul,  but  her  father  had 
often  talked  of  visiting  that  country,  and  one  morning  at 
breakfast  he  expressed  his  intention  of  sailing  at  the  first 
opportunity,  taking  the  family  with  him. 

*  *  *  #  #  *  * 

One  year  after  the  occurrence  in  the  thicket  back  of 
Landsdowne  Hall,  Lillie  was  reading  the  London  Times, 
when  her  eye  accidentally  wandered  over  the  following 
paragraph  : 

"  Arrested  near  London  bridge,  charged  with  highway 
robbery:  Tom  Hawkes,  alias  Lindley,  alias  Brooks,  a 
noted  robber  and  supposed  murderer.  Booked  at  the 


64  THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP. 

Bond  street  station.     A  long  term  in  prison  is  promised 
by  the  police." 

The  name  Liudley  caused  her  to  read  the  item  again  and 
again.  She  sought  old  Wallie  in  the  garden. 

"  Wallie,"  she  said,  "could  you  identify  Lindley, 
Squire  Landsdowne's  former  servant,  should  you  see  him?" 

"  Deed'n  I  cood,  ma  young  bairn.  The  scoulin'  villain. 
'Twad  na  tak  but  a  puir  luike  at  him  to  dintify  him,  ma 
bairn." 

Having  many  friends  and  relations  in  the  great  city  she 
easily  found  an  excuse  to  go  there.  She  compelled  Wallie 
to  trump  up  xme  also,  and  they  went  on  the  following 
morning.  Arriving  at  the  police  station,  London,  where 
the  man  Lindley  was  confined,  Lillie,  hand  in  hand  with 
the  old  Scotchman,  walked  along  the  narrow  corridors, 
following  the  captain  of  police. 

At  last  cell  number  one  hundred  and  three  was  reached. 
Sitting  on  a.  rude  cot  was  no  other  than  William  Lindley, 
who  glared  at  them  through  the  grating  with  a  devilish 
expression. 

It  was  agreed  between  old  Wallie  and  Lillie  that  no 
expression  of  recognition  was  to  escape  their  lips,  or  any 
conversation  to  occur  that  would  reveal  the  meaning  of 
their  errand.  Offering  thanks  to  the  officer  for  his  atten- 
tion they  were  about  to  hurry  away  from  the  place,  when 
the  captain  asked  their  reason  for  so  short  and  silent  an 
interview  with  the  prisoner. 

"  We  merely  wanted  to  see  if  that  prisoner  was  one 
papa  desired  to  find.  He  is  no  friend  of  ours,  I  assure 
you,  sir.  He  no  doubt  is  the  same,  and  our  lawyer  will 
attend  to  the  case.  He  must  soon  see  him,  too,  as  it  is  a 
matter  of  importance. 

The  captain  raised  his  cap  reverentially  as  he  noticed 


THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  65 

Lillie's  beautiful  face  and  refined  manner.     The  strange 
callers  left. 

As  they  walked  the  streets,  passing  the  stores  common 
to  this  neighborhood,  the  groggeries,  Jew  peddlers  and 
dingy  eating-houses,  Lillie  held  firmly  to  Wallie's  hand. 
Old  Wallie,  who  always  detested  the  city,  never  spoke  a 
word.  He  was  conscious  he  was  doing  some  great  deed 
for  his  young  mistress,  but  exactly  what  its  purport  was 
he  dared  not  ask.  He  individually  had  but  one  theory  as 
to  the  cause  of  young  Margate's  death,  and  this  old  Scotch 
pigheaded  theory  could  not  be  shaken  by  all  the  evidence 
in  the  world.  And  that  same  old  head  knew  well  that 
Miss  Lillie  was  deeply  interested  in  upsetting  his  view  of 
the  case.  So,  being  between  two  dilemmas,  the  aged 
gardener  was  sensible  enough  to  say  nothing.  Faithful 
to  the  last,  Lillie  knew  he  would  almost  die  rather  than 
betray  her  secret. 

Passing  a  few  squares  they  hailed  a  hansom  cab,  drove 
to  the  depot  and  left  the  city. 

Having  met  Mr.  Thorpe  several  times,  and  having  heard 
him,  advance  a  theory  of  the  tragedy  almost  similar 
to  her  own,  upon  arriving  at  Maidestone  she  called  at 
the  lawyer's  office.  She  needed  no  introduction.  Thorpe 
dropped  all  business  as  she  entered  the  door.  Advancing 
he  greeted  her  cordially  as  the  daughter  of  his  friend  and 
former  client.  She  stated  briefly  the  cause  of  her  errand. 

"  I  will  be  delighted  to  assist  you,"  he  replied;  but  as 
she  proceeded  in  conversation  he  became  very  guarded 
and  listened  attentively. 

"  My  dear  young  lady,"  the  lawyer  said,  "  are  you  as 
deeply  interested  in  ferreting  out  the  perpetrator  of  this 
terrible  deed  as  I  am?  In  other  words,  are  we  allies? 


66  THE   MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP. 

You  must  know  I  am  aware  of  the  family  feud,  and  was 
long  before  you  were  born." 

"  Mr.  Thorpe,  I  know  you  are  honorable."  Thorpe's 
bright  eyes  twinkled  at  the  compliment  like  a  couple  of 
little  stars.  "  Therefore,"  continued  Lillie,  "  all  I  ask  is, 
that  all  information  I  can  furnish,  all  the  assistance  I  can 
render,  and  it  may  prove  more  than  you  imagine,  must 
remain  a  secret  as  far  as  I  am  concerned." 

"  Why?  "  said  Thorpe,  twisting  his  fingers  and  eyeing 
her  suspiciously.  * '  Well,  before  we  enter  into  this  com- 
pact, let  me  ask  whom  you  consider  the  guilty  party, 
young  Landsdowne  or  Lindley?  " 

"  Certainly  not  the  former,"  exclaimed  Lillie,  blush- 
ing deeply. 

"  Ah!  then  you  believe  Lindley  the  guilty  one?  " 

"Yes,  sir,  indeed.  And  here  I  might  as  well  tell  you 
all." 

The  blush,  had  faded  from  her  lovely  cheeks,  making 
way  for  a  slight  pallor.  Tear-drops  were  starting  in  her 
eyes,  and  she  related  to  the  shrewd  lawyer,  in  as  firm  a 
voice  as  the  little  heroine  could  muster,  the  story  of  her 
meeting  with  Charles,  his  gallantry,  his  desire  to  abolish 
the  existing  feud  between  the  families.  How  she  admired 
him.  How  utterly  impossible  she  considered  it  for  him 
to  commit  the  atrocious  act.  How  deplorable  that  he 
should  be  falsely  accused. 

She  spoke  with  so  much  sincerity,  Thorpe  was  at  once 
impressed  that  she  would  prove  a  strong  ally  and  a  pow- 
erful assistant  to  the  success  of  his  cause. 

He  was  about  to  drive  to  Landsdowne  Hall  that  evening, 
thus  giving  Lillie  a  chance  to  ride  home.  As  they  jogged 
along  behind  the  lawyer's  methodical  cob,  she  reopened 
the  conversation. 


THE   MILLION AIKE  TRAMP.  67 

"Now,  Mr.  Thorpe,  I  will  give  you  the  first  informa- 
tion, and  you  will  see  if,  as  you  say,  woman's  ingenuity  is 
of  any  assistance.  I  know  where  Lindley  is,"  she  said, 
innocently. 

Had  an  American  electric  cyclone  struck  Mr.  Thorpe 
that  moment,  knocking  him  half  a  mile  skyward,  he  could 
not  have  been  more  surprised  than  by  the  utterance  of 
these  words  from  the  sweetest  lips  in  Kent.  He  dropped 
the  lines  and  sat  up  in  the  old  sulky,  appearing  three  feet 
taller  than  usual. 

"  Miss  Margate,  know  now  that  our  case  is  half  won. 
Give  me  your  hand,  my  senior  counsel !  How  on  earth  did 
you  make  the  discovery,  and  where  is  he?  " 

Enthusiastic  to  a  degree  bordering  on  hysteria,  if  such 
a  complaint  were  possible  to  exist  in  this  dry  anatomy  of 
legal  lore,  Thorpe  listened  attentively  as  Lillie  narrated  the 
manner  in  which  she  had  discovered  the  whereabouts  of 
Lindley. 

"  Bravo!"  He  sang  out  as  he  had  not  done  for  twenty 
years.  The  old  horse  caught  the  enthusiasm,  as  he 
neighed  twice,  although  fully  two  miles  from  the  scent  of 
oats,  and  he  shook  his  tail  and  put  his  ears  back  as  if 
something  of  interest  was  being  discussed  that  he  ought 
to  hear. 

The  sun  was  sinking  fast  as  Thorpe  landed  Lillie  safely 
at  the  big  front  gate  at  Oak  Hill,  and  jogged  on  to  Lands- 
do  wne  Hall. 

Jerricks  was  to  be  there  that  evening. 


CHAPTER    X. 

A  LITTLE  DAYLIGHT. 

"Her  precious  pearl  in  sorrow's  cup 

Unmelted  at  the  bottom  lay, 
To  shine  again,  when,  all  drunk  up, 
The  bitterness  should  pass  away." 

In  the  study,  or  small  room,  off  the  main  hall,  at  Lands- 
do  wne,  sat  the  Sqaire,  Mr.  Thorpe,  and  the  London  de- 
tective, Watson  Jerricks.  On  an  old-fashioned,  square 
center  table  were  pipes,  tobacco,  and  a  couple  of  cut-glass 
decanters. 

"  Well,  gentlemen,"  opened  the  Squire,  "  we  have 
much  to  say,  and  much  to  discuss  this  evening,  so  let  us 
begin." 

Taking  a  pipe  and  filling  it  the  Squire  invited  the  others 
to  follow  suit. 

"  Here  is  a  light,  Thorpe,  hand  it  to  Mr.  Jerricks  when 
done  with  it." 

This  part  of  the  ceremony  performed,  the  Squire  looked 
at  the  doors  and  windows  to  see  if  they  were  securely 
bolted. 

"  I  will  look  out  on  the  veranda  to  see  that  no  one  is 
eavesdropping,"  he  said,  opening  the  window.  "  No,  no 
one  there,  but  the  moon  looking  in,"  quoth  the  Squire. 

"  He's  safe,  sir,"  replied  Mr.  Jerricks.  Thorpe  adding 
a  satisfactory  grunt. 

"  In  the  first  place,  Mr.  Jerricks,  from  what  you  have 
seen  and  heard  of  the  action  of  this  man  Lindley,  what 
•are  your  conclusions?  " 


THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  69 

Jerricks  held  the  glass  scientifically  in  his  hand,  and  re- 
plied in  a  careful  and  studied  manner  : 

"  The  fact  of  'is  running  away  with  the  'oss,  sir,  in  the 
first  place  puts  'im  in  the  role  of  a  thief,  sir,  and  a  smart 
un,  too,  and  no  novice  at  that.  Now,  'ad  'e — "  here  Mr. 
Jerricks  placed  his  glass  down  on  the  table,  "  'ave  runned 
away  at  won'st  h'after  the  h'act,  sir,  I  would  'ave  put  'im 
down  for  a  mere  novice,  but  stayin'  and  takin'  of  the  mes- 
sage from  you  to  Mr.  Thorpe,  socunnin',  and  then  jumpin' 
the  neighborhood,  sir,  makes  'im  out  to  be  adroit  in  the 
perfession.  Then  again,  'is  threat  to  young  Margate;  we 
-puts  great  faith  in  prior  threats,  in  cases  o*  this  kind." 

"  But,"  added  the  Squire,  "  didn't  my  poor  son  Charles 
run  away?  and  as  for  threats,  why,  bless  you,  I  havo 
threatened  time  and  again  to  exterminate  the  entire  race 
of  Margates." 

"  Never  mind,  Squire,  please,"  interrupted  Thorpe,  wav- 
ing his  hand  depreciatingly,  "  Let  us  hear  from  Jerricks." 

The  Squire  sat  back  in  his  easy  chair  and  sipped  his  glass 
good-naturedly.  Jerricks  proceeded  : 

"  All  werry  well,  sir,  but  then  again,  you  know,  sir, 
we  are  not  on  your  son's  trail  now." 

This  remark  caused  the  Squire  to  sigh.  Thorpe's  bright 
little  eyes  scrutinized  the  detective's  face. 

"  When  did  you  say  this  h'old  missin'  musket  were 
found,  Mr.  Thorpe?" 

"  At  the  time  of  the  tragedy,"  answered  Thorpe. 

"  I  would  like  to  'avo  it  brought  iu,"  said  Jerricks. 

"  Yes;  I  want  you  to  see  it  before  it  is  handed  over  to 
the  officers,  at  Maidestone,"  replied  the  Squire. 

The  Squire,  sending  for  it,  handed  it  to  Jerricks,  who 
took  it  up  and  carefully  looked  it  over. 


70  THE   MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP. 

"How  long  since  was  this  gun  fired  previous  to  the 
date  of  the  tragedy,  Squire?  "  asked  Thorpe. 

"  Fully  five  years,  I  believe.  Why,  it  was  so  broken 
and  rusty  it  was  not  considered  safe  to  load,"  the  Squire 
answered. 

After  a  critical  examination  of  the  weapon,  Jerricks 
remarked :  ' '  Did  this  'ere  man  Lindley  'ave  any  powder 
and  shot,  or  did  'e  'ave  h'access  to  any  of  your  son's  h'am- 
munition,  Squire  Landsdowne?" 

"  Well,  you  know  he  cleaned  the  outside  of  Charles' 
gun  the  night  before  he  went  out." 

"  Did  he  load  it?  " 

"  That  I  much  doubt,  as  Charles  would  let  no  one  load 
it.  It  must  have  been  loaded  when  Charles  handed  it  to 
him." 

"  Now,"  said  Jerricks,  who  had  risen  and  was  pacing  up 
aud  down  the  floor  with  his  hands  stuck  deep  in  his  pock- 
ets, "  can  we  have  the  double  barreled  gun  your  son  shot 
with  that  day?  " 

"  It  is  in  the  hands  of  the  officers,"  replied  Thorpe. 

"  That  gun  I  must  see,  but  never  mind  to-night.  Were 
the  'ands  on  the  farm  allowed  any  h'ammunition?  " 

"No,  sir.  It  has  always  been  contrary  to  the  rules  of 
the  Hall,"  replied  the  Squire,  decisively.  "  But  still  we 
may  have  had  powder,  as  it  was  used  in  blasting  rocks  in 
the  back  pasture." 

"Good!  Now  do  you  suppose,"  continued  Jerricks, 
"  that  with  the  ramrod  Lindley  could  'ave  taken  out  the 
cartridge,  or  'ave  mutilated  the  shell  of  the  cartridge  —  " 

"  So  that  the  shot  would  have  spilled  out?  "  suggested 
Thorpe. 

"  H'l  would  like  to  see  the  make  of  that  gun.  In  the 
first  place,  a  usual  shotgun  'as  a  spiral  screw  at  the  end 


THE   MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  71 

of  the  ramrod  that  would  pull  the  cartridge  h'out  or  loose 
the  shot  so  that  it  would  drop  h'out.  But  h'l  'm  h'only 
h'asking  these  questions  for  h'information.  There  may 
be  nothing  in  'em,  sir.  Lindley  might  'ave  gone  and 
loaded  the  gun  with  blasting  powder  and  pulled  the  shot 
h'out  of  one  of  the  barrels  of  Charles'  gun.  Which  bar- 
rel was  unloaded?  " 

"  Th3  right  one." 

"  Whether  a  microscopical  h'examination  h'of  Charles' 
gun,  sir,  would  reweal  the  fact  whether  the  shot  were 
fired  or  pulled  h'out,  is  a  h'open  question.  I  thinks  it 
will,  and  h'if  it  will,  it's  a  big  pint  in  h'our  favor,  that's 
h'all." 

"  Now,  I  place  great  significance  in  the  discovery  of 
the  old  musket,"  said  Thorpe,  with  his  two  hands  up  to 
his  face,  his  elbows  on  the  table." 

"  H'it  is  our  little  Moses  in  the  wilderness,"  replied 
Jerricks;  "  h'and  h'if  h'l  knows  my  business  it  will  lead 
to  something  great." 

"  Could  we  only  explain  Charles'  mysterious  disappear- 
ance," exclaimed  the  Squire,  with  a  long  sigh,  his  eyes 
closed. 

"  Who  knows,"  said  the  detective,  pulling  Thorpe's 
arm,  "  but  that  Lindley  did  away  with  Charles  to  cast 
suspicion  on  him,  and  to  make  believe  he  runned  away? 
That's  been  dunned  afore,  Mr.  Thorpe.  Done  several 
times  afore;  indeed  it  'us,"  he  whispered  to  Mr.  Thorpe. 

The  Squire,  half  dozing  in  his  easy  chair,  heard  little  of 
the  last  few  remarks. 

Thorpe  thought  a  moment,  filled  Jerrick's  glass  again, 
then  his  own,  looked  at  the  Squire,  who  was  now  snoring, 
and  then  earnestly  propounded  the  following  conundrum 
to  Jerricks : 


72  THE   MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP. 

"  Now,  if  the  fatal  shot  was  fired  by  Lmdley,  how  did 
it  happen  that  Charles  Landsdowne's  handkerchief  and 
gun  were  found  so  near  the  body?  " 

"  Easy  enough,"  replied  Jerricks,  who,  though  totally 
uneducated  and  unlearned  in  what  is  termed  detective 
science,  was  famous  for  his  keenness  in  ferreting  out  some 
of  the  most  mysterious  murders  that  had  ever  been  com- 
mitted in  England. 

"You  know,  sir,  the  fact  is  prevalent  in  my  mind 
that  this  'ere  Lindley,  as  h'l  said  afore,  is  no  novice. 
That  he  is  an  old  and  'arc!  un,  and  h'if  we  'ad  'is  picterwe 
could  probably  place  'im  on  an  'igh  shelf,  sir."  'E  'as 
been  rusticating,  h'as  we  call  it,  h'out  'ere,  to  h'escape  de- 
tection in  London.  Now,  h'admittiu'  that  our  man's  no 
novice,  'e  would  do  h'every  conceivable  thing  to  cover 
h'up  'is  tracks,  so  h'l  wouldn't  place  much  reliance  on  the 
finding  o'  the  young  man's  'kerchief  and  'is  gun  so  near 
the  body.  Now,  sir,  I  believe  it  will  be  discovered  that 
this  Lindley  killed  young  Margate  with  the  musket  from 
a  hidden  place.  Per'aps  the  stone  fence.  His  footmarks 
were  seen  there.  Then  young  Landsdowne,  hearing  the 
shot,  hastened  to  the  spot.  Seeing  young  Margate 
wounded  and  dying,  'e,  Charles,  'as  tried  to  stop  the 
blood,  and  'as  lifted  'im  and  looked  h'into  his  face.  This 
accounts  for  that  doctor's  statement  about  the  wision  in 
the  young  man's  h'eyes;  but  mind  you  I  don't  go  much, 
h'if  any,  on  that.  Then  this  fiend  Lindley,  seeing  the 
gun  on  the  ground,  has  picked  it  h'up  and  —  " 

"Fired  it  off,"  said  Thorpe. 

"  No,  'old  'ard,  that  won't  do.  'E's  'it  'im  from  behind 
with  the  butt  h'end  of  the  gun,  stunned  'im,  and  then 
knifed  'im.  That  would  be  'is  trick,  as  'e's  no  novice." 

"Then  he  has  hid  young  Landsdowne  in  the  marsh  back 


THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  73 

of  the  farm,"  said  Thorpe,  in  an  excited  whisper.  "He  has 
killed  him  with  the  butt  end  of  the  gun  and  a  knife." 

"Killed!  Killed  who?"  roared  the  Squire,  awaking 
as  if  from  a  bad  dream,  half-wittedly. 

"  Vy,  killed  your  poor  son,  sir,"  said  Jerricks,  whose 
tone  of  voice  had  become  vivacious  with  the  excitement 
caused  by  the  new  theory. 

"  I  see,  I  see,  O  my!  "  said  the  Squire,  as  he  sank  back 
slowly  in  his  chair,  covering  his  face  with  both  his  hands. 

Thorpe,  who  was  busy  running  over  future  plans  in  his 
mind,  proposed  that  a  search  be  inaugurated  for  the  body 
of  Charles  Landsdowne  in  the  marsh  next  morning,  which 
was  acquiesced  in  by  Jerricks,  who  retired  to  leave  for 
London  on  the  early  train. 

The  meeting  adjourned  till  Jerricks  should  come  again 
the  following  week. 


CHAPTER  XI. 
THE   PAUPER'S   LEGACY. 

"  Never  turn  from  gray  hairs  in  contempt. 
No  old  man  is  too  low  to  give  you  good  advioe." 

In  famous  Chicago,  that  wonderful  refuge  for  the  unfor- 
tunates of  the  world,  where  meet  the  criminal  outcast,  the 
pauper,  the  capitalist,  the  man  of  brains,  the  hungry  from 
a  famine-stricken  land,  and  the  unemployed  of  every 
clime — were  James  Darrow  and  Old  Tom. 

They  stood  upon  a  prominent  corner,  a  strong  picture 
—  spring  and  winter.  A  youth  in  blooming  health 
sturdy  with  self-reliance  and  of  noble  manhood,  whoso 
hands  were  now  hardened  from  exposure  and  honest 
toil,  and  whose  bright,  ruddy  face  and  clear  com- 
plexion gave  evidence  of  outdoor  exercise  and  a  good 
digestion.  The  other,  winter,  bowed  and  wrinkled, 
haggard  and  gray,  against  whose  hoary  head  tho  cold 
winds  of  adversity  had  drifted  boisterously  for  many  a 
year. 

*'  The  only  friend  I  have  on  earth,  Mr.  Darrow,"  said 
Old  Tom.  As  he  spoke,  his  teeth  chattered.  "Winter 
is  near.  What  a  burden  I'll  be  to  you,  poor  boy." 

"  Never  mind,  Tom,  old  fellow,  you,  too,  are  the  only 
friend  I  have  in  this  great  city,  and  I  propose  to  stand  by 
you  to  the  end.  Don't  you  understand?  " 

"  Now  I  have  plenty  of  good  warm  clothes  and  you 
must  get  an  overcoat.  Tom,  you  must." 


THE   MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP.  75 

Tears  filled  the  old  man's  eyes.  Kind  words  were 
strangers  tc  him. 

"  God  bless  you!  What  a  heart! "  he  answered,  with 
emotion. 

"  Never  mind  the  heart,  tne  overcoat  is  what  you  need." 

He  helped  Old  Tom  along  till  he  found  a  clothing  house. 

Days  passed  on.  Darrow  had  become  quite  a  fair  brick 
mason  during  his  year's  absence,  and  so  respectful  was  he 
in  his  conduct  that  the  architect  had  promised  to  secure 
him  steady  employment  for  the  winter. 

He  had  secured  comfortable  lodging  for  himself  and  Old 
Tom. 

"  After  all,"  said  Darrow,  one  day,  to  himself,  "  what 
is  better  than  good  honest  labor  to  insure  perfect  health 
and  luxury  of  living.  I  can  eat  a  meal  with  such  a  relish. 
Why,  it  would  set  half  the  epicures  of  London  envious. 
Should  it  ever  happen  that  my  innocence  should  be  proved, 
this  year  will  be  the  making  of  me." 

Old  Tom  was  failing  fast.  His  nerves  had  given  out  of 
late.  Darrow  had  persuaded  him  that  he  must  be  more 
cautious  in  his  mode  of  life.  He  had  provided  him  with 
every  comfort,  but  his  charge  was  slowly  and  certainly 
failing,  and  only  a  short  time  would  intervene  before  the 
old  man  must  pass  away. 

One  evening  as  Darrow  sat  by  Tom's  bedside,  reading, 
his  attention  was  called  to  a  peculiar  look  in  his  eyes,  and 
he  said  to  himself,  musingly,  "  He  has  changed  wonder- 
fully during  the  past  few  days." 

"Darrow,  my  boy,  I  feel  I  am  getting  weaker,  and  I 
would  like  to  tell  you  something,  if  my  time  is  really  up. 
You  have  been  kind  to  me." 

"  Now,  never  mind  that,"  Darrow  said,  laying  his  hand 
tenderly  on  Old  Tom's  head ;  "  Go  on." 

TTte  Millionaire   Tramp  6% 


76  THE   MILLIONAIRE  TBAMP. 

"  Well,"  continued  Tom,  "  you  have  never  yet  asked 
me  my  real  name,  and  I  have  a  secret  to  confide  which  no 
one  on  earth  knows." 

Darrow  listened  attentively. 

"  Although  I  have  been  a  tramp  for  many  years,  I  might 
have  been  better  off,  and  would  have  been  but  for  a  feeling 
of  revenge  which  has  haunted  me  all  my  life,  sending  fire 
through  my  blood  at  the  very  thought  of  him  who  was 
able  to  assist  me. 

"  You  know  I  told  you  about  my  father,  in  New  En- 
land.  He  died  years  ago,  when  I  was  young,  leaving  as 
his  heir-at-law  my  brother.  My  uncle,  a  bachelor  resid- 
ing in  New  York,  I  always  detested.  When  visiting  at 
his  residence  in  New  York  I  got  into  some  difficulty ;  it 
was  a  love  affair.  I  became  acquainted  with  a  young  lady 
and  was  falsely  accused  of  insulting  her. 

*.'  This  uncle  was  an  exceedingly  severe  man.  When 
he  heard  I  was  so  accused  he  tied  me  up  in  a  room  and 
gave  me  a  terrible  and  cruel  whipping. 

"  I  can  almost  feel  the  blows  now,"  and  his  old  eyes 
snapped.  "  I  went  home  and  complained  to  my  father, 
but  a  letter  from  the  uncle  had  preceded  me,  and  instead 
of  my  father  investigating  as  to  the  truth  of  the  matter, 
he  ordered  me  out  of  the  house,  and  I  heard  him  say  he 
would  bequeath  every  dollar  to  my  brother  which  should 
by  right  come  to  me. 

"  My  father  owned,  near  the  city  of  Bangor,  Maine,  a 
farm  which  must  have  become  very  valuable.  I  saw  a  no- 
tice in  a  Bangor  paper  years  ago  that  houses  were  being 
erected  on  it." 

"  And  you  have  suffered  all  this  time  and  never  laid 
claim  to  the  inheritance?" 

"  Well,  I  never  knew  till  two  years  ago  that  my  brother 


THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  77 

had  died  without  issue,  and  the  thought  never  occurred 
that  my  uncle  would  lay  claim  to  the  property  supposing 
me  dead;  as  I  have  been,"  and  Old  Tom  smiled,  faintly. 

"  I  am  sorry,  Tom,  I  know  nothing  of  American  law; 
but  perhaps  you  may  be  the  only  living  heir  to  the  prop- 
erty." 

u  Likely,  very  likely,"  Old  Tom  replied,  and  casting  a 
longing  look  at  Darrow,  he  remained  silent  for  a  moment. 

"  But  it  is  too  late,  too  late  to  make  the  attempt,"  the 
old  man  said,  again  gazing  fondly  at  Darrow. 

"  Say,  my  boy,  you  are  young  and  may  get  something 
out  of  it  yet.  It  may  start  you  in  business,"  he  whis- 
pered, as  his  wan  face  brightened  at  the  idea  he  was  about 
to  express.  "  A  quit-claim  deed,  a  quit-claim  deed,  better 
for  you  than  any  will,  Darrow,  good  boy,"  and  his  poor, 
wrinkled  features  indicated  that  last  calm  preceding 
death. 

"  Do  get  an  attorney  and  notary,  and  draw  up  a  quit- 
claim; my  hand  is  now  steady,  look,"  he  said,  holding  his 
almost  transparent,  bony  fingers  above  the  bed-clothing. 
"File  it  for  record  in  Bangor,  Maine.  Do,  Darrow,  my 
boy ;  it  is  the  last  request  of  Old  Tom." 

Half  to  gratify  the  whim  of  a  wandering  mind,  as  Dar- 
row believed,  not  that  any  good  could  result  from  the  at- 
tempt to  recover  the  property,  he  walked  to  a  corner  drug- 
store, and,  finding  the  directory,  he  soon  sought  an  attor- 
ney who  roomed  in  his  office,  named  Simpson,  whom  he 
summoned  to  Tom's  bedside,  notarial  seal  in  hand. 

The  deed  conveyed  to  James  Darrow  "'all  the  tenements 
and  interests  now  owned  or  possessed  by  the  grantor,  in 
Penobscot  county,  Maine,  including  a  certain  piece  of 
land  containing  80  acres,  in  or  adjacent  to  the  city  of 


78  THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP. 

Bangor,  formerly  owned  by  the  Eeverend  George  Clyn- 
deiming,  situated  as  follows :  *  *  * 

(Signed)  GEORGE  CLYNDENNING, 

Nephew  and  Sole  Heir -at- Law  of  Henry  Clyndenning, 
New  York. 

Next  morning  as  the  gray  light  of  dawn  broke  into  the 
little  bed-room  window,  the  bony  hand  of  Old  Tom  sig- 
nalled Darrow  that  the  last  "  Move  on,  old  man,"  was 
called  by  a  mightier  voice  than  that  of  an  earthly  official. 
Pressing  Darrow's  hand  he  whispered,  earnestly  : 

"  Go  straight  to  Maine !  Go  straight  to  Maine !  Good 
by,"  and  the  eyes  of  this  friendless  wanderer  closed  for- 
ever. 


Darrow  was  not  naturally  mercenary.  Since  his  depar- 
ture from  England  he  had  become  to  consider  himself 
fated.  Wealth  to  him  would  probably  prove  his  down- 
fall. It  was  but  a  matter  of  time,  he  believed,  that  under 
any  circumstances  he  would  be  detected  and  brought  back  to 
England,  and  doomed  to  the  gallows  or  a  convict's  life.* 
Wealth  would  only  hasten  his  capture.  Then  again,  poor 
Old  Tom's  vision  of  property  might  be  but  the  wild  im- 
agery of  an  unfortunate  old  man's  brain. 

The  following  day  he  busied  himself  ruminating  over 
the  advisability  of  a  journey  to  Maine.  A  vivid  dream 
the  previous  night,  in  which  he  thought  he  saw  the  home- 
stead Old  Tom  had  referred  to,  strengthened  his  desire  to 
go.  So  with  what  little  money  he  had  at  his  com- 
mand he  had  the  remains  of  his  old  comrade  embalmed 

*NOTB.— Under  the  rules  of  evidence  in  England,  the  accused  is  not  allowed  to 
testify  in  his  own  behalf,  consequently  an  apparently  strong  chain  of  circumstan- 
tial evidence  may  succeed  in  hanging  an  innocent  man,  and  as  this  case  appeared 
to  him,  all  the  talent  of  the  English  bar  oould  not  have  saved  him. 


THE   MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  79 

and  coffined,  and  left  for  Maine.  This  course  was  the  re- 
sult of  a  request  by  Old  Tom  that  he  would  like,  if  possi- 
ble, to  be  laid  away  in  the  old  church-yard  at  home. 

Arriving  at  Bangor  his  errand  soon  became  known. 
The  remains  of  Old  Tom  were  placed  in  the  vault  in  the 
cemetery,  and  many  citizens,  who  had  been  advised  of  the 
news,  called  to  view  them.  Many  identified  the  features 
as  belonging  to  the  Clyndenning  family. 

"  The  small  finger  of  his  left  hand  was  cut  off  by  a  cir- 
cular saw,  when  a  boy." 

This  remark  was  made  by  an  old  gentleman  who 
had  been  his  playmate.  An  anchor  and  harp  pricked 
in  India  ink  on  his  right  arm,  was  done  at  the 
school-house  by  George  Wright,  the  son  of  a  retired  sea 
captain,  who  still  resided  in  the  city,  and  who  kept  a  flour 
and  feed  store  near  the  court-house.  He  identified  the 
marks  and  remembered  the  fact  because  he  was  punished 
for  the  act  at  the  time  by  the  schoolmaster,  Mr.  Jarvis, 
long  since  dead. 

Darrow  remained  in  the  town  a  week  before  he  present- 
ed his  deed  to  the  recorder.  Having  become  acquainted 
with  a  young  and  exceedingly  intelligent  attorney  at  the 
boarding-house,  Darrow  made  known  to  him  the  facts  of 
the  deed,  which  they  duly  filed  for  record  in  the  court 
house. 

The  discovery  of  George  Clyndenning,  Jr.,  had 
set  many  men  to  thinking  that  the  title  to  the  land 
occupied  by  them  might  become  affected,  but  when  the 
record  of  the  deed  became  public,  it  was  the  talk  of  the 
town.  Small  groups  of  merchants  could  be  seen  congre- 
gating on  the  streets  discussing  the  event. 

The  New  York  brother  of  the  late  Rev.  George  Clyn- 
deuning,  Henry  Clyndenning,  having  died  suddenly  with- 


80  THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP. 

out  issue,  and  intestate,  this  property  had  vested  in  Old 
Tom  as  next  of  kin.  As  it  was  supposed  that  George 
Clyndenning,  Jr.,  alias  Old  Tom,  had  also  departed  this 
life,  the  property  would,  in  that  event,  escheat  to  the 
State  for  want  of  an  inheritor.  The  executors  appointed 
had  executed  leases,  and  a  larger  portion  of  the  Clynden- 
ning farm  lying  along  the  River  Kenduskeag  in  the  busi- 
ness portions  of  the  city,  where  the  lumber  mills,  vessel 
docks  and  warehouses  are,  was  worth  fully  one  million 
dollars. 

Darrow  was  looked  upon  both  as  an  usurper  and  an  ex- 
ceedingly lucky  fellow.  Leroy  Wilson,  the  young  attor- 
ney, had  secured  all  the  evidence  necessary  to  establish  the 
title  of  the  entire  premises. 

A  public  meeting  was  held  in  the  town  hall  to  effect  a 
settlement  with  Darrow.  Prominent  attorneys  were  re- 
tained by  the  city,  but  it  was  agreed  that  Darrow  was  un- 
questionably the  sole  owner  of  the  entire  tract.  The  facts 
were  patent  and  undeniable;  George  Clyndenning,  alias 
Old  Tom,  had  died  a  tramp  when  by  right  he  was  a  mil- 
lionaire, and  James  Darrow  was  his  grantee. 

The  estate  had  been  leased  to  many  citizens  and  the  city 
would  buy.  Eight  hundred  thousand  dollars  was  to  be 
paid  to  James  Darrow  from  the  city  treasury  within  ninety 
days  from  the  date  of  the  meeting. 


CHAPTER    XII. 
THE  CONVICT'S  CONFESSION — TURNING  QUEEN'S  EVIDENCE. 

Darrow  in  the  interim  returned  to  the  western  metrop- 
olis, and  under  a  fictitious  name,  subscribed  for  a 
Maidestone  newspaper,  which  was  sent  regularly  to  the 
address  given.  One  day  while  perusing  its  contents  he 
was  surprised  and  shocked  to  read  in  displayed  head- 
lines the  horrible  words : 

MURDER  WILL  OUT. 
CHARLES    LANDSDOWNE    GUILTY 

OF  THE  KILLING  OF  WARREN  MARGATE. 

CONFESSION  OF  WILLIAM  LINDLEY 


AFTER   THE    ACT    IN  THE    TERRIBLE    AFFAIR. 

The  confession  read : 

"  I,  William  Lindley,  a  convict,  lately  sentenced  to  four- 
teen years  for  highway  robbery,  do  make  this  statement 
under  oath.  I  was  out  in  the  thicket  back  of  Landsdowne 
Hall,  near  Maidestone,  Kent,  repairing  a  stone-fence  for 
my  employer,  Squire  Landsdowne,  when  I  saw  Warren 
Margate  coming  through  an  open  space  in  the  thicket. 
When  within  twenty  paces  from  the  fence  I  saw  Charles 
Landsdowne  appear  from  the  left,  take  deliberate  aim  at 
Mr.  Margate  and  fire,  killing  him  instantly.  Not  desiring 


82  THE   MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP. 

to  be  called  as  a  witness  to  this  transaction  I  assisted 
Charles  Landsdowne  to  escape  and  made  my  way  back  to 
Landsdowne  Hall,  and  soon  left  the  place  for  London. 
(Signed)  WILLIAM  LINDLEY." 

"  The  time  will  come,"  the  article  continued,  "  when 
young  Landsdowne  will  be  captured,  as  a  perfect  descrip- 
tion has  been  sent  to  all  police  headquarters  in  Europe, 
America  and  Australia,"  and  concluded  by  saying:  "  The 
only  clue  to  Landsdowne's  whereabouts,  and  that  is  de- 
cidedly slim,  is  the  fact  that  a  certain  man  answering 
his  description  boarded  an  America-bound  vessel,  the 
Amazon,  at  Chatham.  This  vessel  returned  to  En- 
gland, but  an  interview  with  the  captain  (all  captains 
have  an  innate  dislike  to  * '  ferretin'  land-lubber "  detec- 
tives) disclosed  little  information.  The  man  Lindley  will 
turn  queen's  evidence,  and  thus  save  his  own  punishment 
at  the  expiration  of  the  term  he  is  now  serving." 

This  alarming  news  greatly  dismayed  Darrow,  who  be- 
gan to  fear  his  sudden  acquisition  of  wealth  would  prove 
his  betrayal.  He  strolled  along  the  streets  not  knowing 
what  course  to  pursue. 


CHAPTER   XIII. 

"  Fidelity  brighter  than  any  jewel." 

Lillie  Margate  sat  by  the  front  window  of  her  comfort- 
able home.  She  was  plying  her  needle  for  the  benefit  of 
the  parish  poor.  She  disliked  sewing  societies,  but 
loved  to  make  little  articles  for  a  poor  widow  who  was  the 
natural  guardian  of  five  diminutive  creatures,  and  she 
made  them  stylish,  too.  Once  in  a  great  while  we  discover 
a  girl  who  is  graceful  from  the  topmost  silken  hair  of  her 
well  shaped  head  to  the  soles  of  her  tiny  boots.  She  is 
graceful.  People  call  it  stylish.  Everything  becomes  her. 
She  can  take  a  hat  without  a  feather;  yes,  with  a 
tear  in  the  top,  crowd  it  on  her  head,  knock  it 
all  out  of  shape  by  one  graceful  thump  of  her  grace- 
ful fist,  and  it  immediately  becomes  transformed 
into  a  jaunty,  sweet  little  "  love  of  a  hat,"  in  fact,  super- 
ior to  a  Parisian  importation  costing  as  much  as  a  silk 
gown;  that  is,  on  her  particular  head,  not  so  on  another. 
She  can  don  a  dress  of  atrocious  color,  design  and  cut; 
shake  her  graceful  form  into  it  like  magic,  reef  it  up  a  bit 
here,  let  it  out  there,  move  a  button  or  two — there  now, 
a  little  tighter  about  that  magnificent  throat,  a  smile,  and 
Venus  is  herself. 

In  the  great  millinery  establishments  of  the  world 
pretty  faced  and  rosy  cheeked  girls  try  on  bonnets,  and, 
giggling,  display  their  pearly  teeth,  their  lustrous,  flash- 
ing eyes  peeping  like  diamonds  from  under  the  shadow  of 
a  handsome  bonnet.  This  is  done  to  show  some  homely 


84  THE   MILLION AIEE  TRAMP. 

and  withering  old  inaid,  with  gold  in  her  pocket  but  little 
shrewdness  in  her  head,  that  "  the  bonnet  is  charming." 

"  So  it  is,  indeed,"  she  exclaims,  picturing  in  her  ancient 
mind  what  a  swell  she  will  cut  next  Easter  Sunday. 

Lillie  Margate's  delight  was  to  dress  poor  Mrs.  Jollin's 
"  childer"  up  so  tastily  that  when  they  came  to  Sunday 
school  with  their  clean,  neatly  trimmed  dresses,  the  other 
children  would  look  at  them  admiringly. 

Well,  there  she  sat,  this  good  and  graceful  girl,  every 
stitch  recording  some  recollection  of  a  manly  face. 

"  Where  can  he  be,  (  stitch  )  across  the  deep  ocean? 
(stitch.)  Will  I  ever  see  him  again,  poor  fellow?  "  and  a 
big  tear  bedimmed  her  eyes. 

When  a  woman  says  "  poor  fellow"  the  second  time 
about  a  man,  she  means  more  than  the  words  express — a 
sympathetic  feeling  way  down  in  the  bottom  of  her  heart — 
for  pity  is  akin  to  love,  and  if  she  does  not  love  then  she 
will  soon. 

"  That  horrid  paper  (stitch)  to  write  such  things  about 
Charles." 

A  loud  knock  at  the  door  startled  her  and  she  drop- 
ped her  sewing  and  ran  down  stairs. 

It  was  a  messenger  from  Thorpe,  saying  he  would  like 
to  see  gome  member  of  the  Margate  family  at  his  office 
some  day  soon,  to  ask  a  few  questions  in  regard  to  the 
man  Lindley. 

The  adroit  Thorpe  had  sent  the  message  in  this  form 
knowing  Mr.  or  Mrs.  Margate  would  never  call  on  the 
attorney  of  Landsdowne  Hall. 

The  day  was  bright  and  clear,  and  old  Wallie  hitched 
up  the  chestnut  pony,  who  was  a  fleet  pacer,  and  Lillie 
jumping  into  her  gig  cart  with  Toby,  her  pet  greyhound, 


THE  MILLIONAIRE  THAMP.  85 

leaping  and  yelping  by  her  side,  made  for  the  city,  beating 
the  lawyer's  messenger  and  his  jogging  steed  fully  a  mile. 

Thorpe  was  delighted  to  see  Lillie ;  she  had  been  the 
mainstay  of  his  view  of  the  case.  Jerricks  had  often 
become  disgusted  and  disheartened  as  his  many  strat- 
egies and  theories  had  proven  futile.  The  confession  of 
Lindley  had  almost  converted  him  to  the  belief  that 
Charles  Landsdowne  had  indeed  committed  the  deed ;  in 
fact,  Jerricks  upon  one  occasion  candidly  admitted  to 
Thorpe  that,  "  Ven  a  veller  o'  Liudley's  cloth  gets  down 
to  a  confession  h'its  the  h'only  time  we  believes  'im.  Nev- 
ertheless, Mr.  Thorpe,  the  weak  pint  in  this  confessing, 
be  that  o'  placin'  the  wust  o'  the  crime  on  Landsdowne, 
probably  to  save  'isself." 

Lillie  had  long  since  suspected  that  Charles  Landsdowne 
and  the  James  Darrow  who  shipped  on  the  Amazon  were 
one  and  the  same,  and  patiently  awaited  an  opportunity 
to  express  to  him  her  faith  in  his  innocence;  this 
she  believed  would  encourage  the  wanderer  and  give  him 
hope. 

"  Oh,  I  could  die  with  him  I"  inadvertently  passed  her 
lips  as  Wallie  held  the  gate  open  for  her  on  her  return 
trip  from  the  town.  Old  Wallie  never  looked  up.  His 
young  mistress's  secret  was  safe  with  him,  but  this  fact 
did  not  prevent  the  crimson  from  coloring  Lillie's  pale 
cheeks  at  her  carelessness.  She  longed  for  the  promised 
trip  to  America,  for  then,  she  thought,  she  might  discover 
some  trace  of  him  who  was  uppermost  in  her  thoughts. 

A  family  named  Tupper,  residing  in  Maidestone,  pro- 
posed paying  a  visit  to  New  York,  and  perhaps  to  proceed 
inland  as  far  as  the  Rocky  Mountains,  visiting  Niagara 
Falls,  Mammoth  Cave  and  other  points  of  interest.  Mrs. 
Margate  had  spent  the  day  with  them  and,  having  heard 


86  THE   MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP. 

so  much  about  the  anticipated  excursion,  she  was  full 
of  it. 

Archibald  Margate  had  been  busy  all  day  electioneering. 
He  was  about  to  become  a  candidate  for  election  to  parlia- 
ment, and  when  Mrs.  Margate  proposed  to  sail  with  the 
Tuppers  for  America,  he  discouraged  the  idea,  as  it  would 
upset  his  plans. 

' '  Mamma,  you  and  Lillie  go  with  the  Tuppers  and  leave 
me  here  to  fight  this  political  battle  alone." 

"  Dear  Archie!  I  never  was  away  so  long  from  you." 

"  But,  ma;  pa  would  be  less  worried,  if  we  were  away. 
He  could  then  invite  his  noisy  politicians  to  the  house  and 
they  could  sit  up  and  jabber  all  night  if  they  chose." 

"A  wise  head  on  young  shoulders,  Lill,"  the  farmer 
laughingly  replied. 

It  was  decided  they  should  go  with  the  Tuppers.  Mrs. 
Tupper,  John  Tupper,  junior,  Miss  Nellie  Tupper  and 
Susan,  the  Tupper  maid. 

Busy  times  for  four  weeks.  Seamstresses,  dresses,  sew- 
ing, stitching — my !  what  a  time.  Trunks  ordered ;  great 
preparation.  Ten  times  too  much— the  usual  case  with 
novel  tourists. 

The  day  of  departure  arrived.  All  Lillie's  young  friends 
in  the  vicinity  had  called  to  say  good  by.  Archibald 
Margate  was  to  accompany  them  to  Liverpool. 

Old  Wallie  was  nervous  and  busy  ordering  the  men 
about.  One  team  and  a  spring  wagon  to  take  the  trunks 
and  baggage ;  the  family  carriage  the  smaller  parcels  and 
the  party. 

Lillie's  greyhound,  Toby,  was  to  go  only  as  far  as 
Maidestone.  Poor  Tobias  seemed  aware  that  something 
out  of  the  way  was  to  happen,  as  he  watched  with  wistful 
eyes  the  loading. 


THE   MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  87 

Amid  many  good  bys  and  waving  of  handkerchiefs, 
away  the  family  carriage  rumbled  over  the  highway.  The 
Tuppera  were  at  the  railroad  station,  they  had  been  there 
for  half  an  hour.  Mrs.  Tupper  was  a  matter-of-fact  elder- 
ly lady,  the  wife  of  John  Tupper,  senior,  one  of  the 
greatest  iron  men  in  the  country,  who  "  ran  a  mill  '* 
of  over  one  thousand  employes,  a  man  of  iron  will.  But 
Mrs.  Tupper  ran  the  house  and  John  Tupper  in  a  very 
methodical  and  systematic  manner.  She  always  allowed 
plenty  of  time  for  "  accidents,  delays  or  errors."  She 
had  all  the  baggage  at  the  station  and  checked  at  2  o'clock 
p.  M.,  notwithstanding  the  train  did  not  pass  Maidestone 
till  3  o'clock. 

A  merry  hurrah  was  shouted  by  John  Tupper,  junior, 
as  the  Margate  family  carriage  turned  the  corner  and  ap- 
peared to  view. 

****** 

Darrow  having  tired  of  idleness  accepted  a  situation  as 
book-keeper  in  a  small  store.  He  had  to  work  only  a  few 
hours  a  day,  but  he  was  thus  kept  from  the  street  and  com- 
paratively out  of  danger.  One  evening  while  on  his  way 
to  the  post-office,  a  carriage  passed  close  to  him. 

A  sudden  impulse  caused  him  to  turn  about,  and  in 
doing  so  he  caught  sight  of  one  of  the  occupants. 

"  That  face!  Heavens!  Can  it  be  she?  It  is  if  I  am 
alive!"  he  exclaimed.  "Oh,  how  can  I  make  myself 
known?  Dare  I?  That  she  has  kept  our  acquaintance- 
ship a  secret  I  have  not  a  doubt.  My  God !  does  that  beau- 
tiful girl  return  the  love  I  have  for  her?  "  Thoughts  like 
these  flashed  with  lightning  rapidity  through  his  mind  as 
he  gazed  fervently  after  the  retreating  carriage. 

Clenching  his  fist  tightly  he  exclaimed,  after  a  moment's 
consideration:  "  I  will  see  her  if  I  die  for  it." 


88  THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP. 

Following  the  vehicle  hurriedly  he  noticed  its  destina- 
tion, one  of  the  largest  hotels  in  the  city.  Yes,  it  was  true ; 
on  the  register  appeared  the  names : 

MRS.  TUPPER. 

MRS.  MARGATE. 

Miss  LILLIE  MARGATE. 

Miss  NELLIE  TUPPER. 

JOHN  TUPPER,  JR.,  all  of  England. 

Darrow  was  a  man  who  seldom  acted  hastily ;  seating 
himself  in  the  lobby  of  the  hotel  he  considered  what  he 
should  do  and  how  to  get  word  to  Lillie. 

"  A  meeting  must  be  planned ;  how  can  it  be  done  in 
safety  to  Miss  Margate  and  myself  ?  " 

Fortune  and  Fate,  two  peculiar  dames,  who  sometimes 
mutually  agree  to  give  sister  Hope  a  chance,  caused  Lillie 
Margate  to  remain  at  home  in  the  hotel  that  evening  to 
write  some  letters,  while  the  others  of  the  party  attends 
ed  the  theatre.  Darrow  saw  them  leave  the  hotel,  and  as 
the  door  of  the  carriage  slammed  his  heart  leaped  with 
joy.  He  now  determined  on  a  bold  stroke.  Entering  the 
office  he  wrote  on  a  card  : 

DEAR  Miss  MARGATE  : — An  old  friend  who  once  lived 
near  you  in  Kent  would  like  very  much  to  see  you  in  par- 
lor B  a  moment,  if  you  please. 

Addressed,  Miss  MARGATE,  Room  804. 

Lillie  was  surprised  and  startled  at  receiving  such  a 
note ;  so  agitated  did  she  become  that  half  a  minute  elapsed 
before  she  instructed  the  bell-boy  as  to  the  answer  for 
which  he  stood  waiting  at  the  door. 

After  an  effort  she  summoned  up  strength  enough  to 
articulate :  "  Tell  the  gentleman  I  will  be  down  in  a  mo- 
ment. Stay;  tell  me,  what  is  the  gentleman's  name?  " 


THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  89 

*  'He  did  not  say,  mum.     Isn't  it  on  the  card,  mum?  " 

**  Never  mind,  I  will  go  down.  It  is  he.  It  must  be." 
A  hot  flush  of  excitement  came  over  Lillie,  and  her  cheeks 
were  burning,  because  she  believed  the  next  moment 
would  bring  her  face  to  face  with  the  man  she  secretly 
loved.  Throwing  a  wrap  over  her  shoulders  she  ran 
nimbly  down  the  steps. 

Coming  to  the  parlor  mentioned  in  the  note,  Lillie 
paused  at  the  door;  Landsdowne  walked  forward,  and, 
grasping  her  proffered  hand,  said,  earnestly : 

"Miss  Margate,  I  thank  you  from  the  bottom  of  my 
heart  for  granting  me  this  visit.  Brave  girl !  You  do 
not  deem  me  guilty?  say  no,"  and  his  voice  was  full  of  emo- 
tion; "Say  no,  Miss  Lillie,"  and  he  rested  his  hand 
lightly  on  her  shoulder,  and  looked  into  her  face.  Lillie 
looked  down,  tears  filled  her  eyes,  and  she  answered  in  a 
manner  that  conveyed  in  four  words  the  writings  of  a 
page: 

"  No,  I  never  did." 

"Thanks,  Miss  Lillie;  God  bless  you,  my  dear  good 
friend!  " 

Like  a  sister  forgiving  the  returned  brother,  she  sat 
beside  him  on  the  lounge. 

"  We  must  talk  but  a  short  time.  Your  friends  have 
gone  to  the  theater.  I  will  be  brief  and  tell  you  all. 
You  will  believe  me,  Miss  Lillie,  won't  you?  " 

"  I  will !  "  and  she  brightened  up  and  looked  in  his  face 
with  love-lit  eyes, — such  love-lit  eyes;  drinking  in  the 
manly  words  of  her  lover. 

"  Your  kind  face  has  been  my  only  solace  in  my  trouble," 
Landsdowne  began.  "  I  have  wandered  from  place  to 
place.  There  is  no  home  for  me. "  Again  big  tears  glist- 
ened in  Lillie's  eyes.  "  But  God  and  you,  Lillie  Margate, 


90  THE   MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP. 

know  I  am  innocent — and  that  is  more  than  half  the  bat- 
tle." 

Sitting  side  by  side  the  last  of  an  antagonistic  race, 
these  two  looked  into  the  grate  fire,  and  in  the  dying  embers 
they  saw  and  read  the  gloomy  picture  of  their  future  life, 
but  their  hearts  were  brave  and  full  of  hope.  Lillic  inno- 
cently told  her  story  of  the  visit  to  Lindley  in  prison,  also 
her  alliance  with  Thorpe  in  the  great  case  of  the  Crown  vs. 
Landsdowne,  what  she  had  done  to  attempt  to  unravel  the 
mystery,  little  divining  every  word  she  said  was  a  token  of 
the  love  she  bore  the  listener.  "And  here  I  am,"  she  said ; 
"I  have  come  all  the  way  to  try  and  find  you,  to  try 
and  comfort  you,  poor — "  she  was  about  to  say  poor  boy! 

Landsdowne  was  mortal,  he  couldn't  stand  it.  Putting 
his  arm  around  her  he  kissed  her  fervently  on  the  lips ! 

Lillie  blushed  but  said  not  a  word.  By  far  too  sensible 
to  say,  "  You  must  not,"  too  true  to  herself  to  become 
apparently  annoyed.  She  loved  Charles  Landsdowne 
— all  the  doubts  existing  in  her  heart  had  flown  forever, 
and  she  would  not  flinch  from  her  position  by  assuming 
what  she  did  not  mean. 

Modesty  compelled  the  blush  of  innocence  to  mount 
her  cheek,  but  her  heart  was  staunch  and  true,  and 
Landsdowne  knew  it  on  account  of  her  silence. 

"  Now,  we  must  not  yet  be  seen  together,  Miss  Lillie," 
he  said. 

"  I  don't  care  if  we  are, but  we  must  be  wise."  She  spoke 
hurriedly. 

"  In  half  an  hour  they  will  return ;  we  must  not  meet 
again  while  you  are  in  the  city,"  she  said,  sadly. 

"  I  have  half  a  mind  to  go  back  and  stand  my  trial  like 
a  man ;  with  your  permission  I  will  do  so." 

"  Oh,  Charles  I"  she  replied,  "  what  if  it  should  happen 


THE   MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  91 

that  you  should  be  convicted?  What  if— no,  I  will  not 
permit  it.  I  cannot."  As  the  little  maiden  pronounced 
these  words,  she  looked  straight  into  his  face,  her  lustrous 
eyes  flashing  in  almost  a  mandatory  manner,  but  Lands- 
do  wne  knew  it  was  for  love  of  him. 

"  Do  as  I  say;  stay  till  my  return  to  England,"  she  con- 
tinued. "  Give  me  your  assumed  name  on  this  card," 
handing  him  a  card. 

Charles  wrote,  James  Darrow. 

"  You  sailed  on  the  Amazon;  I  knew  it  was  you." 

"  You  surprise  me." 

"  Am  I  not  correct?  " 

u  You  are,  indeed." 

"  I  will  tell  you  in  a  long  letter  how  I  discovered  this. 
Oh,  I  am  so  happy,  now,"  she  said,  prettily.  "  This  man 
Lindley  committed  the  deed." 

"  Darrow's  eyes  fairly  stood  out  from  their  sockets  with 
astonishment. 

"Listen,"  Lillie  continued,  while  she  assumed  a  busi- 
ness air.  "  Lindley  loaded  your  gun  the  night  before." 

"  No,  but  he  cleaned  it." 

"  Yes,  and  he  took  the  charge  of  shot  out  of  the  cart- 
ridge and  put  it  in  the  old  musket,  followed  brother  out  to 
the  thicket  and  killed  him." 

Landsdowne  stood  facing  her,  pale  with  the  astonishing 
developments  being  cited. 

"  Was  the  musket  found?  " 

"  Yes,  near  by,  hid  in  the  grove." 

"  Did  he  have  any  shot?" 

"No;  the  pickles  taken  from  poor  brother's  wound 
were  taken  from  your  gun  the  night  before." 

"My  God!"  he  exclaimed;  "Lillie,  this  is  news  to 
me.  The  truth  flashes  before  me.  Warren  said  when 

The  Millionaire   Tramp  7\  . 


92  THE   MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP. 

dying,  I  holding  his  head  on  my  knee,  '  Two  shots!  Two 
shots!'  Yes,  poor  fellow,  he  had  seen  Lindley  shoot.  I 
kissed  him  when  he  was  dying  and  implored  his  forgive- 
ness." 

"  Charles,  I  am  so  glad  of  that;  and  one  doctor  at  the 
inquest  said  your  face  was  photographed  in  his  eye,"  she 
said,  earnestly,  *'  and  that  accounts  for  it." 

"  Now  we  have  the  truth,  but  how  can  we  prove  it? '» 
said  Charles,  eagerly. 

"  But  one  safe  way,"  replied  Lillie,  again  looking  at  the 
clock;  "  by  the  testimony  of  Lindley;  and  he,  I  know, 
would  swear  your  life  away." 

"  Yes,  as  he  tried  to  in  that  statement.  Hold!  there  is 
another  way,  brave  girl.  Yes,  I  believe  the  Almighty 
will  be  with  us,  but  we  must  work." 

"  Could  we  only  prove  the  barrel  fired  from  your  gun 
was  not  loaded  with  shot ;  and  oh,  how  hard  I  have  tried 
to  discover  some  one  who  saw  Lindley  withdraw  the  shot. 
Who  is  that  boy,  a  sort  of  half  idiot,  who  works  at  the 
Hall?  He  says  he  saw  Lindley  with  Master  Charles'  gun  ?  " 

"Pete,  poor  Pete.'  said  Landsdowne,  smiling  at  the 
recollection.  He  was  so  fond  of  me.  How  hard  he 
begged  to  have  me  take  him  shooting."" 

Lillie  answered  pleasantly,  "  I  have  tried  for  months  to 
see  him,  but  you  know  he  has  the  family  failing  in  his 
dread  of  the  Margates.  The  detective  says  this  boy  knows 
more  than  he  desires  to  tell ;  but  the  detectives  use  this 
as  a  stereotyped  phrase  I  am  afraid." 

Again  Lillie  looked  at  the  clock. 

u  Bless  you!  "  Landsdowne  said;  "and  you  have  been 
working  for  me  so  industriously  all  this  time.  You  brave, 
good  girl,  how  can  I  ever  thank  you?  " 

The  hands  of  the  ornamented  hotel  clock  were  both 


THE   MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  93 

pointing  towards  ten.  One  farewell  kiss  and  Lillie  tripped 
up  the  stairs,  her  heart  too  full  of  joy  and  hope  to  say 
farewell. 

When  Landsdowne  parted  with  Lillie,  a  sense  of  loneli- 
ness came  over  him,  and  he  determined,  if  possible,  to  at 
least  catch  one  glance  of  her  ere  she  returned  to  England. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

A  VISIT  TO  MAMMOTH  CAVE. 

" Love  is  blind  and  lovers  cannot  sea 
The  pretty  follies  that  themselves  commit.* 

The  entrance  to  Mammoth  Cave,  Kentucky,  is  reached 
by  a  path  down  a  wild  ravine  about  three  hundred  yard* 
from  the  hotel  on  the  bluff,  and  surrounding  it  are  tulip 
trees,  grape  vines,  butternuts  and  maples,  fringing  ferns, 
green  mosses  and  tinted  leaves. 

Mrs.  Tupper  sat  down  on  a  step  with  a  sigh.  "  Oh, 
dear;  what  a  dreadful  place  this  America  is,  to  be  sure. 
Things  are  so  far  apart  you  have  to  walk  or  travel  fifty 
miles  to  get  anywhere.  There,  now,  Miss  Margate,  I  am 
going  to  have  my  backache  again." 

Young  Tupper,  his  sister  and  Lillie,  were  examining 
some  beautiful  ferns  which  grew  in  crevices  on  the  rocks. 
Mrs.  Margate  had  decided  to  remain  at  the  hotel  and  join 
them  on  the  second  trip. 

Inside  the  entrance  of  the  cave,  dressed  in  the  garments 
usually  worn  by  those  who  take  the  long  route,  stood  a 
party  apparently  deeply  interested  in  the  late  arrivals. 

Matt,  the  colored  guide,  had  been  chartered  to  escort 
them.  The  old  darky  was  busy  answering  questions  for 
half  a  dozen  voices  at  once. 

Mrs.  Tupper  did  not  like  the  idea  of  walking  several 
miles.  "Have  they  no  carriages,  Mr.  Guide? " 


THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  95 

" Bless  you!  no,  mum!  Carriages  vould  have  a  bad 
time  down  dar,  missus,"  with  a  grin. 

"  How  many  miles  did  you  say  your  short  route  was?  " 
she  inquired,  sarcastically. 

"  Seben." 

"And  you  expect  me  to  walk  seven  miles?  " 

"  No  one  eber  tires  in  dis  cave.  Make  up  your  mine, 
mum." 

After  considerable  coaxing  Mrs.  Tupper  consented  to 
go,  and  donning  the  cave  attire  she  started  out,  following 
closely  on  Matt's  extensive  heels;  Miss  Tupper  next,  then 
Lillie,  followed  by  young  Tupper  as  protection. 

"  Dar  a  gemman  hyar  who  would  like  to  jine  the  party, 
missus,  if  youse  no  'jection,  missus." 

Mrs.  Tupper  turned  about  and  looked  the  gentleman 
over  carefully. 

"  Why,  no.  He  appears  to  be  respectable  and  honest," 
said  blunt  Mrs.  Tupper,  aloud. 

"I  sincerely  hope  I  am  not  intruding,"  the  stranger 
said,  raising  his  hat  politely. 

"  No,  indeed,"  replied  Mrs.  Tupper,  in  a  motherly  way, 
"  I  was justsaying  to  the  girls,  '  I  wish  Tupper  was  here;' 
I  feel  rather  afraid  to  journey  through  this  terrible  place 
without  some  male  escort.  Come  along,  young  man," 
said  the  matter-of-fact  old  lady,  and  the  girls  giggled  at 
the  home-like  appellation. 

Taking  the  characteristic  staff  from  the  guide  he  joined 
in  the  single  file  procession  immediately  behind  young 
Tupper,  with  whom  he  joined  in  conversation  when  the 
party  reached  the  Gothic  Gallery  and  were  looking 
with  great  interest  at  the  old  vats  and  pump-frames. 
A  stairway  beyond  led  to  the  gate  of  a  long  avenue. 
From  this  ample  gateway  a  narrow  gallery  or  rocky  shelf 


96  THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP. 

sweeps  entirely  across  the  main  cave,  really  forming  a 
bridge,  whereby  one  might  pass  to  the  other  side. 

"  On  dat  rocky  platform  over  yonder,  Mr.  Edwin  Booth 
once  spoke  s'lections  from  Hamlet,"  said  the  guide. 

"  What  did  he  do  that  for?  "  quoth  the  original  Mrs. 
Tupper. 

"  I  specks  to  'muse  some  of  his  frens,  missus." 

Here  Matt  lit  some  fireworks  which  illumined  the 
cavern  and  created  a  beautiful  scene  along  the  chasm. 
Lillie  was  leaning  on  her  staff  when  she  turned  suddenly 
pale. 

"  It  cannot  be  he." 

None  other  than  her  lover,  his  face,  his  voice,  his  eyes. 
She  turned  away  as  a  sudden  joy  came  over  her. 

Old  Matt  said,  "  Dis  yere  place,  ladies,  used  to  be  known 
as  de  haunted  chamber,"  as  he  pointed  into  the  cavern, 
' '  and  I  must  tole  you  some  interestin'  legens'  concernin' 
it." 

As  Lillie  turned  away  her  face  Landsdowne  believed 
he  caught  a  look  of  recognition,  and  yet  he  would  not  for 
the  world  betray  his  identity  to  the  Tuppers. 

Having,  as  he  had  supposed,  sufficiently  disguised  him- 
self, he  stood  close  to  Matt,  listening  to  his  wonderful 
tale. 

Matt  told  of  a  miner  who  had  lost  his  way  in  the  cave, 
and  who,  when  he  heard  the  echoes  of  his  own  voice, 
thought  he  was  in  the  infernal  regions.  Lillie,  assuming 
interest,  crossed  over  from  her  position  and  stood  near 
Landsdowne. 

Being  clad  in  the  quaint  traveling  costume  worn  by  the 
ladies  in  the  cave  added  to  rather  than  detracted  from  her 
beauty;  her  eyes  beaming  with  love  brought  sufficient 


THE   MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  97 

compensation  for  the  many  hours  he  had  awaited  her 
arrival. 

"  So  near  and  yet  so  far,"  the  stranger  said  to  Lillie, 
and  they  soon  evidently  became  deeply  interested  in  each 
other. 

Mrs.  Tupper,  witnessing  the  change,  expressed  herself 
this  way: 

"  Now,  there,  that's  always  the  way.  Those  two  young- 
sters have  become  acquainted  and  I  must  trudge  it  alone. 
Young  man,  let  me  take  your  arm." 

The  stranger  gallantly  acceded  to  the  demand. 

On  reaching  the  Pillars  of  Hercules  old  Matt  collected 
the  lamps  and  arranged  them  with  fine  effect. 

"  We  are  now  among  de  arches  ob  Gothic  Chapel,"  he 
said,  inviting  them  all  to  enter. 

These  pillars  were  so  grouped  as  to  form  two  Gothic 
arches. 

"  Befo'  dis  alta'  a  young  bride  once  stood." 

"Did  she  get  married  here?  "  inquired  Lillie. 

"  Yeth  'um,  she  had  promised  her  mudder  dat  she  neber 
marry  no  man  on  de  face  ob  de  earth,  and  you  believe  it, 
she  kep'  her  promise." 

The  stranger  slipped  forward,  asking  Matt  just  where 
they  stood,  and  how,  taking  Lillie's  hand  and  pretending 
to  face  the  altar. 

"  Look  out,  Lill,"  said  Miss  Tupper,  "  coming  events 
cast  their  shadows  before," 

The  guide  told  them  of  several  romantic  marriages 
having  taken  place  here,  winding  up  by  saying,  "Young 
people  believe  it's  good  luck  to  get  married  or  engaged 
here." 

The  stranger  touched  Miss  Lillie's  staff  at  this  remark. 


98  THE   MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP. 

They  stood  close  by  as  the  others  started  to  leave  the 
place ;  he  noticed  an  expressive  smile  upon  her  fair  face. 

The  avenue  leading  from  Gothic  Chapel  was  over  a  mile 
in  length  and  abounded  in  grotesque  curiosities:  The 
"  Old  Arm-Chair,"  a  stalagmite  resembling  a  chair;  The 
Elephant's  Head,  Vulcan's  Shop,  The  Lover's  Leap, 
Gateswood's  Dining  Table,  Lake  Purity,  Napoleon's 
Dome,  grand  in  symmetry  and  size. 

As  the  party  retraced  their  steps  to  the  main  cave  as  far 
as  the  Giant's  Coffin  they  left  it  by  a  crevice  and  found 
themselves  in  the  Deserted  Chambers.  The  opening  on 
the  left  is  called  Black  Snake  Avenue  on  account  of  its 
serpentine  windings.  As  the  guide  announced  the  name 
Mrs.  Tupper  stood  stock  still  and  gathered  her  skirts 
tightly  about  her. 

"  Now!  "  she  exclaimed,  "  I've  had  plenty  of  this,  I'm 
nervous  enough." 

Old  Matt,  chuckling,  replied :  "  Bress  you,  marm, 
dere  ain't  no  snakes  in  dis  cave.  Its  de  name  of  de  ave- 
noo.  He!  he!  he!  " 

Mrs.  Tupper  looked  dubious  and  muttered  to  herself, 
"  Well,  we've  got  to  believe  these  guides." 

Plodding  quietly  along  for  one  hundred  and  fifty  yards, 
old  Matt  shouted,  "  Danger  ahead!  " 

Mrs.  Tupper  held  tightly  to  her  staff  and  said  she 
wished  she  was  home.  The  stranger  caught  Lillie's  hand 
and  helped  her  safely  over  the  rocks. 

Beside  the  path  yawned  a  chasm  called  the  Side-saddle 
Pit,  from  the  shape  of  the  projecting  rock,  on  which  the 
party  seated  themselves  and  watched  with  fearful  interest 
the  rolls  of  oiled  paper  lighted  by  the  guide  and  dropped 
into  the  abyss.  Down  they  went  in  a  fiery,  spiral  form, 
burning  long  enough  to  give  them  a  view  of  its  corrugat- 


THE  MILLIONAIRE   TKAMP.  99 

ed  side  and  a  mass  of  blackened  sticks  and  timbers  sixty- 
five  feet  below. 

Descending  the  stairway  fifty  yards  beyond,  they  en- 
tered the  labyrinth,  a  narrow,  winding  passage  barely  wide 
enough  for  two  persons  to  go  abreast.  The  stranger  first 
powerfully  and  respectfully  assisted  the  colossal  form  of 
Mrs.  Tupper  down,  then,  returning,  he  helped  Lilliemake 
the  trip.  As  he  passed  down  the  steps  he  held  her  hand 
tightly,  quoting  Moore's  homage  to  the  fair  sex : 

"  O  woman  1  -whose  form  and  whose  soul 
Are  the  spell  and  the  light  of  each  path  we  pursue, 

Whether  sunn'd  in  the  tropics  or  chill'd  at  the  pole, 
If  woman  be  there,  then  is  happiness  too." 

Jogging  along  back  to  the  main  cave  the  party  visited 
Echo  River,  where  they  entered  a  boat  and  floated  over  its 
strange,  transparent  waters,  as  if  gliding  through  the  air. 

"  May  I  call  out  your  name,  Miss?  "  asked  the  stranger, 
who  sat  beside  her  in  the  craft. 

"  Do,  if  you  please." 

"What  is  it?" 

"  Lillie." 

"L-i-1-l-i-e  ! "  he  shouted,  his  voice  reverberating  fully 
twenty  seconds. 

"  I  am  here,"  she  responded,  and  as  the  music  of  her 
voice  came  back  from  the  echoing  rocks  he  whispered, 
"  God  bless  you,  I  wish  you  could  always  be  with  me." 

And  then  she  fully  identified  the  stranger.  The  party 
retraced  their  steps,  and  separated  at  the  entrance  of  the 
cave,  all  bidding  the  stranger  a  friendly  adieu. 


CHAPTER    XV. 

A  FISHING  TEIP. 

A  few  days  after  the  Tupper  party  had  returned  to  the  west- 
ern city,  they  were  invited  to  the  home  of  Henry  Sanford, 
Esq.,  a  wealthy  iron  man,  whose  American  house  repre- 
sented the  Tupper  Mills,  of  Maidestone,  England.  Mr. 
Sanford,  like  many  wealthy  citizens  of  the  metropolis, 
owned  a  beautiful  summer  villa  on  the  shores  of  the  tran- 
quil Lake  Geneva.  It  was  his  custom  to  invite  his  friends 
to  spend  a  few  days  in  this  picturesque  retreat  from  the 
business  world.  Arriving1  at  the  lake  by  the  lightning 
train  on  the  Northwestern  Kailroad,  Sanford's  steam 
yacht  was  in  readiness  to  convey  the  merry  party 
up  the  crystal  lake  to  their  destination.  Mrs.  Tup- 
per grew  enthusiastic  as  the  fleet  little  steamer  flew 
with  them  past  the  one  hundred  magnificent  palaces  which 
almost  boastingly  exhibit  their  stately  domes  and  turrets 
through  the  openings  in  the  green  woods. 

If  nature  was  guilty  in  planting  the  great  commercial 
city  upon  the  flattest  of  prairies,  she  also  deserves  credit 
for  placing  within  a  two  hours'  ride  one  of  the  prettiest  and 
most  charming  lakes,  to  whose  fair  shores  and  shaded 
groves,  tired,  perspiring  workers  hie  themselves  annually 
to  rest  and  recuperate. 

Here  they  bathe  in  the  fresh,  clear  water,  the  small  sal- 
aried clerk  and  the  millionaire,  as  free  as  the  aborigines 
did  only  fifty  years  ago. 


THE  MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP.  101 

"  Nature  was  cunning  when  she  made  this  lovely  lake 
so  close  to  where  the  big-  city  was  to  be,"  exclaimed  Mrs. 
Tupper,  as  she  opened  her  rather  extensive  parasol. 

"  Look!  lookl  "  said  Fanny,  pointing  to  some  boys  in  a 
-mall  boat  near  by,  who  were  struggling  with  all  their 
might  to  land  a  four  pound  black  bass. 

Mr.  Sanford  ordered  the  wheelman  to  pull  up  close  to 
the  boys,  who  were  quite  diminutive  anglers,  and  handed 
them  a  landing  net,  with  which  the  little  fellows,  not  over 
ten,  skilfully  landed  their  prize,  amidst  the  cheers  of 
those  on  the  steamer. 

"  To-morrow,"  said  Mr.  Sanford,  "  we  will  have  a  grand 
day,  and,  Mrs.  Tupper,  you  must  make  up  your  mind  to 
catch  all  the  fish  you  want  for  dinner,"  he  said,  in  a  joking 
manner. 

Mrs.  Tupper  thereupon  made  a  wager  with  Mrs.  Mar- 
gate that  she  would  get  the  first  bite. 

"  What  time  shall  we  start?  "  asked  Lillie  and  Fanny  in 
the  same  breath. 

4 '  Start,"  said  Mr.  Sanford,  taking  out  his  watch  by 
habit,  "  four  o'clock,  sharp." 

"  That's  it,"  said  Mrs.  Tupper,  "  you  Americans  will  be 
sure  to  make  hard  work  of  it.  Fishing,  praying  or  eating 
all  the  same.  Now,  why  will  it  not  do  to  start  at  nine 
o'clock?  " 

"Nine!  Why,  my  dear,  good  lady,  the  fish  would  be 
asleep  by  that  time.  Four  o'clock  is  the  time.  It  is  love- 
ly out  here  on  the  lake  at  sunrise,  and  the  air  is  so  balmy 
you  never  tire.  I  will  engage  the  men,  who  are  to  row  us, 
to-night,  and  have  the  bait  ready,  and  so  when  I  blow  the 
horn  (you  know  we  have  an  old-fashioned  fog-horn  at  the 
*  castle 'which  would  wake  the  seven  sleepers)  you  must  be 
all  ready  to  fall  in." 


102  THE   MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP. 

The  girls  laughed  heartily  at  the  idea,  and  patient  Mrs. 
Margate  looked  earnestly  at  Mr,  Sanford's  face  to  see  if 
he  meant  what  he  said. 

"  How  about  breakfast?"  said  young  Tupper,  already 
feeling  the  effect  of  the  ride  on  his  appetite. 

"Breakfast  on  the  steamer.  I  will  give  you  as  good  a 
cup  of  coffee,  made  on  that  boiler  over  there,  as  you  ever 
drank.  We  will  have  to  go  several  miles  up  the  lake  to 
the  best  fishing  grounds,  and  that  is  the  cause  of  our  early 
start,"  Mr.  Sanford  replied. 

Arriving  at  the  elaborate  home  of  the  Sanfords,  the 
party  passed  a  pleasant  evening  in  discussing  the  beauties 
of  the  lake,  and  after  a  refreshing  slumber,  the  fog-horn, 
blown  by  the  stalwart  lungs  of  big  Mr.  Sanford,  echoed 
along  the  quiet  shores,  and  all  dressed  in  haste  to  join  in 
the  anticipated  excursion. 

Three  villagers  of  rather  seedy  appearance  occupied  seats 
in  the  stern  of  the  steamer. 

One,  a  man  of  middle  age  and  rather  intellectual  face, 
was  none  other  than  the  Philosopher. 

When  Mr.  Sanford  had  despatched  to  the  town  for  boat- 
men, the  messenger  accidentally  stumbled  across  him  on 
the  dock  at  the  steamboat  landing. 

Fishing  boats  were  towed  behind  the  steamer,  and 
when  the  proper  point  was  reached  the  party  divided  and 
took  to  the  boats.  Harry  Sanford  and  his  sister  Nellie, 
as  lucky  anglers  as  the  lake  possessed,  were  with  the 
party. 

The  other  boatmen  rowed  the  large  boats  occupied  by 
Mrs.  Margate,  Lillie,  Fanny,  Young  Tupper  and  the  two 
young  Sanfords,  while  the  Philosopher  furnished  the  mus- 
cle for  the  boat  in  which  Mr.  Sanford  and  Mrs.  Tupper 
were  to  test  their  hooks. 


THE   MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  103 

The  Philosopher,  owing  to  force  of  circumstances,  had 
not  partaken  of  his  usual  number  of  potations,  and  his 
mind  was  as  clear  and  brilliant  as  a  Daniel  Webster.  He 
never  spoke  a  word,  however,  but  rowed  hither  and 
thither  at  the  command  of  his  employer. 

" Mr.  Boatman,  what  countryman  are  you?"  said  Mr. 
Sanford,  eyeing  him  critically  for  a  moment. 

"  I  was  born  in  Montreal,  but  educated  in  the  western 
part  of  Canada." 

"  Oh!  educated,  did  you  say?  "  said  Mrs.  Tupper,  turn- 
ing about  and  surveying  his  ragged  clothes  and  rimless 
hat  rather  ironically. 

"  Educated?     What  for— the  ministry?  " 

"  No,  but  it  is  said  I  can  preach  a  very  fair  sermon," 
rejoined  the  tramp. 

The  hooks  were  baited  with  minnows,  and  as  the  Phi- 
losopher trolled  quietly  along  a  few  paces  from  the  shore, 
the  other  occupants  of  the  boat  watched  eagerly  for  a  nib- 
ble. I  think  this  is  a  good  place  along  here,  said  Mr. 
Sanford,  casting  his  long  line  into  a  weedy  spot  for  black 
bass;  and,  true  enough,  a  tug  and  a  jerk  indicated  some- 
thing firmer  than  weeds  had  taken  hold  of  his  hook.  By 
skilful  manipulation  a  three-pounder  was  landed  into  the 
boat,  to  the  infinite  delight  of  Mrs.  Tupper  and  the  dis- 
tant hurrah  of  those  in  the  other  boats,  who  had  witnessed 
the  successful  operation. 

"  I  enjoy  my  leisure  hours  out  here,"  said  Mr.  Sanford, 
with  a  self-satisfied  air.  "  It  gives  one  such  a  rest  from 
business  cares.  By  the  way,  Mrs.  Tupper,  you  are  not 
annoyed  quite  so  much  in  England  as  we  are  by  these 
tiresome  strikes." 

"  No,  but  John  Tupper  becomes  greatly  annoyed  some- 
times with  the  manager  and  superintendents  at  the  mills. 


104  THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP. 

They  are  so  severe  on  the  men  at  times,  and  John,  you 
know,  bless  his  heart,  is  inclined  to  be  so  kind." 

"  Severe  with  the  men,  indeed.  Why,  here  we  dare  not 
even  dictate  to  the  men.  They  would  call  a  union 
meeting  and  demand  the  discharge  of  an  overbearing  su- 
perintendent at  once." 

The  Philosopher  was  rowing  quietly  along,  listening 
gravely  to  the  conversation. 

"Yes,  I  understand  you  have  had  much  trouble  in 
America.  Of  course  strikes  are  not  unknown  to  us ;  but 
the  men  in  our  mills  seem  so  patient,  and  work  long  hours 
without  complaining." 

"  I  am  sorry  to  say,"  said  Mr.  Sanford,  "  that  I  expect 
great  trouble  at  no  distant  day  in  this  country.  The  so- 
cialistic element  is  pervading  the  entire  working  classes. 
Free  speech,  the  curse  of  this  country,  is  one  cause 
of  it.  What  would  you  think  of  a  man  getting  up 
in  the  public  square  in  Maidestone  and  talking  treason  to 
a  mob,  advising  them  to  cry  havoc,  plunder,  sack  and  burn 
the  town,  overthrow  the  government,  hang  millionaires  to 
lamp  posts,  and  distribute  their  possessions?  " 

"Horrible!"  exclaimed  Mrs.  Tupper.  "But  wait,  I 
have  a  bite.  Look!  ugh!  I've  got  him!  Mr.  Sanford, 
pull  in  my  line,  quick!  Hurrah!  "  the  old  lady  shouted. 

"  It's  only  a  perch!  "  exclaimed  the  Philosopher,  "  a  so- 
cialistic perch." 

"Why  so,  Mr.  Boatman?"  laughingly  inquired  Mr. 
Sanford. 

* '  The  perch  is  socialistic  because  he  eats  up  the  bait  be- 
longing to  the  black  bass,  the  working  man,  and  has 
caused  this  good  lady  much  excitement  for  nothing." 

"  You  are  right  in  one  sense,"  said  Mr.  Sanford,  "  the 
socialist  is  the  *  *  sucker  "  who  breeds  mischief  among  the 


THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  105 

working  men,  and  takes  away  their  bread.  In  fact,  makes 
a  living  by  pandering  to  the  vicious  elements  of  this 
class." 

"  You  will  excuse  me,  sir,"  said  the  Philosopher,  look- 
ing up  at  Mr.  Sanford,  whose  good  knowledge  of  human 
nature  had  discerned  some  remnant  of  refinement  in  the 
Philosopher's  address,  "  I  have  studied  this  labor  problem 
considerably  of  late." 

Mrs.  Tupper,  who  was  examining  her  late  catch,  looked 
at  the  boatman,  inquisitively. 

"  Yes;  I  was  thinking  this  morning  of  Wendell  Phil- 
lips' words,  *  Never  look  for  an  age  when  the  people  can 
be  quiet  and  safe ;  at  such  times  despotism,  like  a  shroud- 
ing mist,  steals  over  the  mirror  of  freedom." 

Mrs.  Tupper  looked  at  the  Philosopher's  rimless 
hat.. 

"  The  people  are  quiet  to-day,  I  think,"  said  Mr.  San- 
ford. 

"  I  beg  to  differ  from  you,  sir.  The  socialistic  blather- 
skite I  have  no  interest  in  whatever,"  said  the  tramp ;  "  he 
is  a  pestilential  nuisance,  and  of  no  earthly  use.  But  the 
working  man,  the  laborer,  is  not  quiet,  neither  is  he  safe. 
This  class  will  never  be  quiet,  never  be  safe,  while  they  are 
in  the  grasping  power  of  the  monopolist.  The  men  who 
pile  up  large  fortunes  must,  sooner  or  later,  be  brought 
to  a  position  where  they  must  decide  that  on  this  great, 
free,  God-given  earth,  one  man,  a  millionaire,  cannot 
rest  and  amuse  himself  with  all  the  enjoyments  wealth 
can  bestow,  out  of  the  semi-slavery  of  men  who  toil  ten 
or  twelve  hours  a  day  for  a  bare  pittance,  hardly  enough 
to  keep  body  and  soul  together." 

"Yes;  but,  my  dear  sir,  do  you  call  ten  to  fifteen  dol- 
Jars  per  day  a  pittance?  " 


106  THE   MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP. 

* '  Ho !    I've  another  bite !  "  shouted  Mrs.  Tupper. 

"It  is  only  a  weed,  madam,"  said  the  Philosopher, 
dryly. 

"  The  hours  of  labor  must  be  reduced,"  continued  the 
tramp,  "so  that  toilers  can  have  more  time  to  learn  the 
science  of  self-government." 

"Yes,  but  you  do  not  answer  my  question.  Do  you 
know  that  I  am  paying  men  as  high  as  fifteen  dollars  per 
day?"  replied  Sanford,  interested  in  the  pauper's  logic. 
"  Many  able  lawyers  and  clergymen  do  not  earn  that 
much." 

"  Yes,  that  is  true,"  said  the  Philosopher,  who  was 
anxious  for  an  argument,  "  but  it  was  the  inventive  genius 
of  some  poor  workman  that  produced  your  labor-saving 
machines,  which  can  be  run  only  by  these  fifteen-dollar-a- 
day  men,  instead  of  the  same  work  being  done  by  twenty, 
as  was  the  case  prior  to  their  invention.  Then  again," 
continued  the  tramp,  excitedly,  "look  at  the  social  bar- 
riers between  industry  and  capital,  barriers  of  pride,  caste, 
hatred  and  bitterness.  The  workman ,  or  the  very  inventor 
of  your  livelihood  and  success,  cannot  meet  you  face  to 
face;  he  cannot  discuss  with  you  the  details  of  the  business 
you  are  jointly  operating." 

"  Why  not?  "  exclaimed  Sanford,  rather  haughtily. 

" He  cannot.     He  may  suggest,  he  cannot  dictate." 

"  Then  you  would  have  the  employe  dictate  to  the  em- 
ployer, would  you, Mr.  Boatman?" 

"  Not  beyond  his  ability.  But  I  would  place  men  of 
inventive  genius,  and  of  equal  ability,  side  by  side  and 
face  to  face,  be  they  capitalists  or  workmen.  There  should 
exist  a  conciliatory  spirit  between  the  two.  Joint  boards 
of  arbitration  should  exist.  The  working  element  should 
be  permitted  a  hearing  on  all  subjects.  Arbitration  should 


xHE   MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  107 

be  allowed  and  encouraged  by  both  parties.  The  capital- 
ist should  come  down  from  his  high  horse  and  consider  the 
laborer  a  fit  subject  to  breath  this  free  air,  and  to  talk,  eat, 
live  and  enjoy  his  life.  There  would  then  grow  up  a  high- 
er order  of  manhood  among  this  people.  Education 
would  be  sought  by  them.  The  science  of  mechanism 
thrives  among  them,  and  a  rapid  advancement  in  all  that 
pertains  to  perfection  in  the  various  branches  of  trade 
would  occur." 

Mrs.  Tupper  had  dropped  her  rod  and  was  gazing  at  the 
logical  vagrant.  She  had  never  heard  such  conversation 
from  such  a  ragged  individual.  But,  Mrs.  Tupper,  you 
good-hearted  old  lady,  we  have  many  such  logical,  theo- 
retical, but  personally  impracticable  people  in  this  country. 
Men  who  have  the  ability  to  run  a  nation,  but,  through 
some  defect,  cannot  earn  a  meal. 

"  "What  is  your  name,  my  friend?  "  said  Mr.  Sanford. 

"  I  have  no  name,"  answered  the  Philosopher,  indiffer- 
ently, "  I  am  called  the  Philosopher." 

"  You  are,  indeed,  a  man  of  considerable  intellect. 
Hold!  Kow  gently.  Do  you  see  that  line?  Steady! 
Now  then,  pull  ahead.  Ah!  I've  got  him,"  said  Mr.  San- 
ford,  giving  his  rod  a  side  jerk,  as  the  reel  worked  with 
lightning  rapidity.  It  is  a  whopper,  I'll  bet !  Now,  Phi- 
losopher, easy ;  get  the  landing-net  ready.  Ah !  ha !  there 
he  is,  a  brave  one ;  a  five  pounder  if  he's  an  ounce !" 

Mrs.  Tupper  applauded,  and  the  engineer  in  the  steamer, 
half  a  mile  away,  sounded  his  steam  whistle  as  he  saw  the 
big  fish  glitter  in  the  sun. 

"  You  will  dine  with  me  to-night,  Mr.  Boatman,  for 
this." 

Mrs.  Tupper  looked  horrified. 

As  the  boats  returned,  Mr.  Sanford  took  the  tramp  up 

The  Millionaire   Tramp  8, 


108  THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP. 

to  the  bathroom  and  ordered  him  a  bath.  A  suit  of  re- 
spectable clothes  was  raked  out  from  a  wardrobe,  and  in- 
stead of  the  ragged  boatman,  sat  a  man  who  would 
grace  the  board  of  any  family  in  America.  A  man  of  ex- 
cellent manners,  witty,  logical,  a  scholar  and  a  gentleman. 
Mrs.  Tupper  became  deeply  interested  in  Mr.  Philoso- 
pher, and  she  expressed  herself  anxious  and  willing  to 
assist  him  out  of  his  forlorn  condition.  For  one  evening 
he  enjoyed  the  society  of  those  who  awakened  in  hi& 
breast  the  memory  of  sober,  respectable  and  happy  days. 
It  was  a  gleam  of  sunshine  over  his  shadowed  path. 
******  * 

When  the  excursionists  returned  to  the  city,  driving 
over  a  swing  bridge  they  saw  by  the  abutment  thereof,  a 
man  whose  clothes  were  muddy  and  torn,  his  face  dirty  and 
hair  unkempt.  He  was  resting  his  weary  head ;  his  blood- 
shot eyes  glared  up  at  the  passing  carriage.  It  was  the 
Philosopher. 

*****  *  * 

Darrow  was  detained  later  than  usual  at  his  place  of 
business  one  evening  fixing  up  some  accounts.  The 
weather  was  sultry  and  he  sought  the  street  for  fresh  air. 
It  was  growing  late,  still  many  pedestrians  were  hurrying 
to  and  fro.  Now  and  then  a  policeman  walked  lazily  by. 
Entering  a  rather  degraded  locality  he  had  not  proceeded 
far,  when  from  a  basement  saloon  of  an  exceedingly  dingy 
building  in  what  is  called  the  levee,  he  heard  the  sound  of 
a  voice  as  though  someone  was  lecturing  or  haranguing 
an  audience.  Peering  into  the  window,  which  scarcely 
rose  to  the  level  of  the  sidewalk,  he  was  surprised  to  see 
upon  a  platform,  wildly  gesturing,  none  other  than  the 
Philosopher. 

Having  become  quite  interested  in  this  eccentric  indi- 


THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  100 

vidual,  Darrow  entered  the  hall,  or  "  underground  varie- 
ty," as  such  places  are  called,  and  sat  in  a  remote  corner 
so  that  the  Philosopher  would  not  recognize  him.  This 
was  a  place  of  resort  for  the  vilest  of  the  vile.  Twenty- 
five  half- drunken  women,  of  all  ages,  sat  about  beer 
tables  drinking  beer  with  as  many  more  men  of  all  grades. 
Among  these  women  were  sprinkled  young  girls  whose 
faces  even  retained  a  look  of  modesty,  but  whose  young 
souls  crime  and  degradation  had  long  since  captured  for 
their  own.  Old  hags  whose  sottish  faces  bore  the  imprint 
of  habitual  drunkenness  and  debauchery.  Young  clerks 
and  gray-haired  men  whose  appearance  indicated  they  were 
sadly  out  of  place  within  those  dirty  walls.  Professional 
thieves,  burglars  and  confidence  men  made  this  their  head- 
quarters. Behind  a  bar  in  one  end  of  the  room  was  a  man 
with  dark-red  curly  hair.  He  was  known  among  the  fre- 
quenters of  the  levee  by  the  appropriate  but  inelegant 
cognomen,  "  Curly." 

The  Philosopher  had  many  a  time  spent  his  half-supper- 
less  night  upon  the  pillowless  benches  of  Mr.  Curly's  thea- 
ter. Mr.  Curly  was  somewhat  of  a  mathematician.  He 
always  counted  that  a  hanger-on  around  his  place  could 
be  put  to  some  use.  If  he  could  play,  or  as  Mr.  Curly 
professionally  termed  it,  fake  upon  any  instrument  so  as  to 
amuse  his  audiences,  he  ranked  as  No.  1  in  Curly's  class 
of  pupils. 

Thus,  should  he  happen  to  have  a  voice  for  singing  and 
could  aid  in  singing  a  duet  with  one  of  the  "  ladies,"  or 
sing  a  comic  song,  or  "do"  a  good  jig  or  clog,  or  was 
what  Mr.  Curly  would  call  a  "ham-fatter,"  a  song  and 
dance  man,  or  was  at  all "  celebrated  "  on  the  underground 
stage,  he  would  rank  on  Mr.  Curly's  table  of  sciences  as 
No.  2. 


110  THE   MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP. 

No.  3  embraced  all  manner  of  what  the  proprietor 
termed  "  worthless  bums."  The  Philosopher  fell  within 
that  class,  and  had,  owing  to  his  entire  inability  to  per- 
form, not  very  much  claim  on  Mr.  Curly's  forbearance. 
Several  times  he  came  near  being  ejected  from  the 
premises  because  he  had  failed  to  add  one  nickel  to 
Curly's  exchequer,  not  being  invited  to  drink  by  some 
generous  customer. 

"  A  biznis  lookin'  chap's  always  good  for  an  invitation. 
Flosopher,  yer  no  good,"  he  had  said,  early  that  evening, 
with  disgust  portrayed  on  his  prominent  under  jaw ;  "  yer 
can't  fake  or  hamfat,  and  yer  gettin*  too  low  to  cap  drinks, 
so  yer  got  to  git !  D'ye  hear?  " 

Before  the  words  had  taken  effect  on  the  Philosopher  a 
"  customer  "  passed  the  tramp  a  nickel,  which  granted  him 
a  little  grace  with  the  business-like  landlord,  who  pushed 
the  tramp's  half-dime  into  the  till  with  a  dexterous  twist 
and  passed  in  return  a  glass  of  flat,  black-looking  lager. 

The  Philosopher  drank  it  with  one  quaff,  and  resumed 
his  seat  with  an  air  of  one  who  had  accomplished  a  great 
deed.  It  appeared  that  later  on  some  customer  had  men- 
tioned to  Curly  that  the  Philosopher  was  a  rattling  good 
temperance  lecturer,  so  the  great  mind  of  Professor  Curly 
had  resolved  to  use  him  in  a  new  role.  "  Temp'rance  fake. 
That's  a  good  un,"  said  Mr.  Curly,  as  he  lit  a  cigar. 
"Let's  have  a  lecture  this  evening,  he  said,"  with  a 
knowing  smile  to  a  musician.  "  Call  him  up,  Jim,"  he 
said,  pointing  to  the  Philosopher,  who  was  half  dozing  in 
his  seat.  The  Philosopher,  believing  another  beer  was  in 
sight,  sprang  with  alacrity  to  the  bar  at  the  musician's 
signal.  Curly,  leaning  over  the  bar,  addressed  the  Philoso- 
pher: "  Say,  cull,  can  you  lecture  on  temp'rance?  " 


THE   MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP.  Ill 

"  "What  do  you  want  with  that?  "  said  the  Philosopher, 
rather  disappointed. 

"  The  byes  want  a  speech;  when  it's  11:  30  we'll  call 
you;  d'ye  hear?  "  said  Curly.  "Here  you  are,  and  he 
passed  over  the  counter  to  the  Philosopher  a  black  bottle 
and  a  glass. 

The  Philosopher  filled  it  to  the  brim  and  saluted  the 
scheme.  "  It's  a  good  one,"  he  said. 

When  the  hour  arrived  the  Philosopher  mounted  the 
stage.  Curly  having  plied  him  with  several  heavy  drinks 
he  was  ready  and  willing  to  perform. 

The  hall  was  then  well  filled.  The  Philosopher  had 
commenced.  Darrow  noticed  the  proprietor  of  the  place 
was  busy  explaining  to  several  of  his  audience  the  fun  they 
were  about  to  have. 

The  women  laughed  and  derided  the  Philosopher  with 
drunken  calls  and  yells,  but  Professor  Curly  ordered 
quietness  and  his  order  was  supreme. 

As  the  liquor  fired  the  Philosopher's  fertile  brain  he 
proceeded  eloquently.  Many  in  the  audience  were  sur- 
prised. All  but  the  older  drunken  hags  became  interest- 
ed. The  glasses  stopped  jingling,  the  waiters  stood  look- 
ing up,  tears  came  to  the  eyes  of  the  less  hardened. 

Curly  sat  on  the  counter.  At  first  he  joined  in  the  ap- 
plause sarcastically ;  then  he  became  silent ;  then  he  turned 
pale  with  rage  and  demanded  that  the  Philosopher  should 
desist.  The  Philosopher  went  on  thundering  forth  elo- 
quent sentences.  Powerful  oratory  it  was,  full  of  mag- 
netism ;  he  fairly  electrified  this  sottish  assemblage. 

Outsiders,  passing,  stopped  at  the  door.  Among  the 
passers-by  that  night  was  one  who  has  done  more  for  the 
unfortunate  than  all  the  high-salaried  ministers  in  the 
city  put  together.  A  man  with  a  big  heart  and  who  goes 
among  the  thorns  and  thistles  of  life  to  find  a  rose.  Ho 


112  THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP. 

was  attracted  by  the  sound  of  the  Philosopher's  voice  and 
listened  at  the  open  window. 

He  walked  down  the  steps  and  leaned  against  the  door. 

The  Philosopher  was  giving  a  description  of  his  wasted 
life.  Curly  was  sitting  on  his  bar.  There  was  a  leer  of 
contempt  upon  his  face,  but  still  he  seemed  interested  and 
kept  his  wild  dark  eyes  fastened  on  the  Philosopher  like  a 
wildcat. 

"  Such  men  as  that,"  yelled  the  Philosopher,  pointing 
to  Curly,  "  have  sent  more  souls  to  hell  than  all — " 

Before  he  had  finished  the  sentence,  Curly  had  drawn 
a  revolver  quick  as  a  flash,  and  pointing  at  the  Philoso- 
pher, hissed  at  him :  "  Git  down  or  I'll  fire  the  hull  top  of 
yer  head  off,  yer  bum !  " 

The  Philosopher  heeded  not  the  request,  though  inter- 
rupted for  the  time  being.  Those  in  the  room  sought 
safety  under  tables  and  behind  chairs,  while  many  ran  out. 
The  gentleman  who  had  waited  at  the  door  came  forward 
and  requested  Curly  not  to  shoot. 

"  Well,  let  him  shut  up,"  he  said,  doggedly. 

"  I  will  take  him  out,"  replied  the  gentleman. 

Several  officers,  hearing  of  the  disturbance,  had  arrived, 
and  Curly  resumed  his  business  behind  the  bar ;  beckon- 
ing to  one  of  them  he  ordered  the  Philosopher's  removal. 

This  incident  proved  a  turning-point  in  the  Philosopher's 
checkered  career.  It  was  not  long  before  he  became  a  re- 
formed man,  and  has  since  turned  the  path  of  many  a  way- 
farer like  himself,  and  the  time  has  come  when  the 
Philosopher  proves  one  of  the  most  ardent  advocates 
among  a  class  of  men  who  are  never  properly  appreciated 
in  a  large  city — those  who  take  hold  of  the  miserables 
who  have  become  too  low  to  receive  charity  and  spiritual 
sustenance  from  the  high-collared  church-member. 


THE  MILLIONAIRE  TEAMP.  113 

It  has  often  been  a  question  in  the  mind  of  the  author 
whether  this  class  of  reformer  is  not  more  deserving  of 
patronage  and  praise  than  the  gentleman  who  administers 
to  the  spiritual  necessities  of  the  oak-pewed  aristocracy 
<br  a  stipend  of  $10,000  per  annum  and  bouquets. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

GETTING  FACTS  FROM  A  FOOL. 

"  Truth  crashed  to  earth  will  rise  again." 

Not  long  after  Lillie's  return  to  England  she  endeavored 
to  run  across  Peter,  the  half  idiotic  boy  at  Landsdowne 
Hall.  She  did  not  dare  to  go  near  the  house  in  search  of 
him,  but  watched  for  him  as  he  might  pass  going  for  the 
cows.  Peter  was  fond  of  whistling ;  he  could  be  heard  on 
a  still  night  crossing  the  fields  piping  some  weird  tune, 
perhaps  created  by  the  wild  imaginings  of  his  partially 
daft  brain,  or  played  by  the  fairy  pipers  in  the  thickets;  a 
spot  which,  since  the  finding  of  Warren  Margate,  seemed 
to  impress  him  with  great  awe. 

Lillie  had  frequently  heard  this  whistling  joskin  pass ; 
she  could  scarcely  refrain  from  rushing  after  him,  so  bent 
had  she  become  on  interviewing  him  in  regard  to  the  vital 
point  upon  which  she  relied  so  much. 

Day  after  day,  and  still  no  opportunity  occurred  for  a 
meeting.  One  afternoon,  as  Lillie  sat  in  the  window  per- 
forming her  accustomed  watch,  who  should  come  along 
the  road  toward  Maiclestone  but  this  very  important  per- 
sonage. He  was  pulling  a  hand-cart,  the  tire  of  one  of 
the  wheels  of  which  was  on  the  box,  demonstrating  to  the 
passer-by  that  the  oaf  had  met  with  an  accident  and  was 
en  route  to  the  blacksmith  shop,  which  was  about  a  mile 
down  the  road. 


THE   MILLIONAIRE   TBAMP.  115 

He  whistled  loud  and  clear  as  he  passed  Margate's  main 
gate.  He  had  a  bright  cock's  feather  in  his  rather  rusty 
hat,  and  as  he  sauntered  along  pulling  the  cart,  he  stopped 
his  music  at  intervals  to  mutter  to  himself.  He  was 
of  a  noticeable  disposition,  and  at  all  times  and  under  all 
circumstances  brimming  over  with  a  sort  of  imaginary 
mirthfulness.  When  he  saw  a  little  bird  on  the  fence  he 
would  say,  "  'Elloo,  little  un,  why  bean't  thou  a  singin'? 
what  good  be  ye  unless  ye  sing?  " 

Now  and  then  the  cart  pulled  a  little  hard,  as  the  road  in 
spots  had  become  muddy  from  a  recent  shower,  and  Peter 
would  turn  towards  the  cart,  and  pulling  it  industriously 
would  say,  "  Coom  along,  old  feller,  coom  along,  we  be  a 
goin'  to  the  shop.  Doan't  be  so  hard  pullin'." 

Then  he  saw  a  squirrel  on  the  roadside.  This  caused  a 
complete  halt  of  the  cart,  whistling  and  muttering,  and  he 
gazed  after  the  little  animal  as  it  jumped  nimbly  along 
the  fence = 

"  Where  be  thee  goin'?  "  he  said,  "  goin' to  thy  supper? 
Is  the  little  uns  hungry?  Cooin  to  me  and  I'll  get  thee 
nuts."  But  the  squirrel  disappeared,  and  Pete  toted  on 
his  way. 

Then  a  small  pool  by  the  wayside  attracted  the  idiot's 
attention.  He  again  stopped,  and  making  a  boat  from  a 
piece  of  chip  he  rigged  up  a  sail  from  part  of  the  feather 
from  his  hat  and  blew  it  across  the  pool.  This  caused  him 
to  grin  so  widely  that  the  whistling  was  again  suspended. 
He  was  thus  engaged  when  a  gig-cart  and  pony  with  Lil- 
lie  Margate  for  a  driver  came  up. 

The  joskin  pulled  his  hat  over  his  eyes,  and  abandoning 
his  ship  to  the  merciless  winds,  resumed  his  journey. 

Lillie  addressed  him. 

"  What  a  heavy  load  you  have,  poor  Peter."    The  kind 


116  THE  MILLIONAIRE   TEAMP. 

voice,  so  unexpected  from  one  of  a  family  whom  he  had 
been  taught  to  dread,  caused  him  to  look  up  and  open  his 
unusually  capacious  mouth.  He  answered  not  a  word,  but 
as  he  recovered  from  his  astonishment  he  grinned  again. 

"You  may  hitch  your  cart  behind  my  gig  if  you  choose," 
said  Lillie. 

This  is  a  proposition  which  savors  of  danger,  thought 
the  fool,  and  by  a  powerful  attempt  at  sagacity  he  grin- 
ningly  replied : 

"Ye  may  run  away  wid  it." 

"No,  indeed,  Peter,  I  will  take  it  to  the  shop  for  you, 
and  you  may  ride  in  the  gig  with  me.  " 

This  proposition  staggered  him.  All  the  traditions  of 
horrible  deeds  committed  by  the  Margates  for  a  century 
back  floated  before  him.  He  scratched  his  uncouth  head 
for  a  moment,  but  an  assuring  smile  from  Lillie  dispelled 
his  woful  fancies. 

"  Now,  Peter,  you  know  I  only  want  to  be  kind  to  you 
and  help  you  carry  your  load." 

The  idiot  gazed  steadily  at  her  sweet  face  for  a  minute 
without  answering.  He  failed  to  discover  in  its  expres- 
sion the  counterpart  of  direful  hobgoblins,  and  he  half  con- 
sented. 

*  'You  are  not  afraid  to  ride  with  me,  Peter,  surely;  I  al- 
ways heard  you  were  so  brave?  " 

This  was  a  clincher.  "  Flatter  a  fool  and  he  will  give 
you  half  his  loaf." 

He  pulled  a  string  from  his  pocket  and  commenced  ty- 
ing his  cart  to  the  springs  of  the  gig.  Peter  had  com- 
promised the  contract  in  his  own  mind ;  he  had  decided  to 
accept  the  hitch,  but  ride  in  the  hand-cart.  Lillie  was  sat- 
isfied, as  she  believed,  that  by  drawing  him  into  a  conversa- 
tion she  could  reason  him  out  of  the  hand-cart. 


THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  117 

"  I  am  afraid  the  wheel  will  break,  Peter,"  she  said. 

He  scratched  his  ungainly  head  again. 

"Come,  get  out  and  ride  with  me,  I  will  have  you  there 
in  a  minute. " 

He  complied  and  the  following  dialogue  occurred  in  the 
mile  along  the  road  to  the  smith's.  After  some  prelimi- 
nary talk  she  said : 

"  Peter,  you  used  to  know  Lindley,  did  you  not?" 

"  Yes'm,"  he  replied,  munching  some  candy  generously 
bevstowed  by  Lillie  with  much  foresight. 

"  I  wonder  where  he  went?  " 

No  answer  for  a  minute. — "Lunnun,"  he  finally  an- 
swered. 

"  Did  you  like  him,  Peter?  " 

"  Naw,"  and  he  again  munched  half  a  sugar  stick  in  his 
capacious  maw. 

"  Don't  you  remember,  Peter,  when  my  brother  was 
killed?" 

He  looked  up  with  a  half  frightened  stare  into  her  face 
but  did  not  answer. 

' '  You  remember  the  time,  don't  you?  " 

He  nodded  affirmatively. 

"  Did  not  Lindley  often  load  Master  Charles  Lands- 
downe's  gun?  " 

Lillie  had  now  struck  an  interesting  vein  of  thought 
for  the  idiot. 

"  Yaas ;  and  Maester  Charley'd  like  to  'ave  me  with  'im, 
but  tother  farm  'ands  wus  jellus.  I  knows,  and  he  grinned 
and  giggled  aloud. 

"  Oh,"  said  Lillie,  to  herself, "  not  such  a  fool  afterall." 

"  People  are  foolish  to  be  jealous,  Mr.  Peter,  are  they 
not?" 


118  THE   MILLIONAIRE   TRAJVIP. 

"  Yaas,"  and  he  pulled  another  piece  of  candy  from 
the  bag  and  put  it  in  his  mouth. 

The  subject  of  hunting  proved  exceedingly  interesting 
to  him.  Lillie  described  vividly  to  his  mind  how  pleasant 
it  was  to  see  the  pretty  pheasants  in  the  grass. 

1  'Yaas,  its  nice  for  de  sportsman,"  laughed  the  idiot. 

"  Not  so  for  the  pheasants,  is  it,  Peter?  " 

"  Naw,"  and  he  munched  another  bull's  eye. 

' '  Peter,  did  you  ever  see  a  man  take  a  charge  of  shot 
from  a  gun  without  firing  it  off  ?  "  Peter  thought  a  mo- 
ment while  he  looked  in  the  candy  bag. 

"  Yaas." 

Lillie  experienced  a  cold  chill  as  she  waited  a  reply. 
She  stood  as  if  on  the  brink  of  a  precipice.  Upon  this 
idiot's  answer  the  fate  of  her  lover  hung  suspended.  It 
came,  and  the  idiot  never  divined  why  Miss  Margate 
dropped  the  lines  and  turned  so  deathly  pale. 

"  Yaas,  (munch)  I  saw  Lindley  do  it  the  night  afore  the 
murder."  (Munch). 

Lillie  took  a  long  breath  of  the  invigorating  air  from 
the  clover  blossoms.  Her  heart  beat  rapidly  and  she  felt 
faint.  Away  in  the  distance  she  saw  a  vision  of  Charles 
Landsdowne  coming  back.  "  He  is  coming  back  from  over 
the  broad  ocean.  My  lover." 

"  Thank  God,"  was  all  the  answer  she  gave  the  idiot  as 
she  revived.  He  was  looking  in  the  bottom  of  the  candy  bag, 
but  the  last  candy  was  gone.  Shortly  the  reaction  caused 
Lillie  to  laugh  hysterically. 

The  blacksmith  opened  his  eyes  wide  when  he  saw 
Landsdowne's  fool  and  the  daughter  of  "  M.  P."  Margate 
riding  side  by  side. 

"  I  helped  poor  Peter  with  his  cart,"  merrily  laughed 
Lillie;  "please  help  him  untie  it." 


THE   MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  119 

The  blacksmith  raised  his  hat,  and  when  Miss  Lillie 
turned  and  sped  for  home,  the  smith  looking  after  the  re- 
tiring gig,  exclaimed:  "Ah,  she  be  one  of  nature's  good 
uns ;  not  a  many  like  unto  she." 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

CALLED  BACK. 

"  Where  love  Is  great,  the  littlest  doubts  are  fear. 
When  little  fears  grow  great,  great  love  grows  there." 

On  her  way  back  Lillie  was  in  a  thoughtful  frame  of 
mind,  discussing  whether  to  write  to  "  Darrow"  or  not. 
' '  What  assurance  have  I  that  this  unfortunate  Peter  would 
adhere  to  his  statement?  "  she  thought.  There  was  one 
thing  certain,  Peter  was  not  so  thoroughly  idiotic  as  she 
had  expected.  His  memory  seemed  good  and  why  would 
not  his  testimony  be  admissible.  "Oh,  how  I  wish  I  were 
a  lawyer,"  she  ejaculated.  Thorpe  came  to  mind ;  "Too  late 
to-day,  I  must  possess  myself  in  patience  till  to-morrow; 
my  knowledge  of  Charles'  whereabouts  must  remain  a  se- 
cret from  Thorpe  and  the  world  at  present."  Alighting 
from  the  gig,  Wallie  came  to  take  the  pony  to  the  barn. 

The  next  morning  bright  and  early  Lillie  journeyed  to 
Maidestone;  when  she  entered  Thorpe's  office,  she  found 
the  little  man  engaged  in  deep  study.  He  did  not  look 
up.  He  had  not  seen  her  since  her  return  from  America 
and  had  not  expected  her.  So  overjoyed  was  he  upon 
hearing  her  voice  that  he  dropped  his  books  with  a  slam 
and  came  out  from  the  inner  room  all  smiles. 

"  Why,  my  brave  little  ally,  how  glad  I  am  to  see  you 
again.  I  had  almost  lest  courage  since  your  departure. 
I  so  missed  your  clever  suggestions ;  more,  in  fact,  than  I 
would  Jerrick's.  How  did  you  enjoy  your  trip?  I  called 
on  the  Tuppers  last  evening ;  they  were  all  so  talkative 


THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  121 

i 

about  the  wonders  of  America  that  I  could  not  get  a  word 
in  edgewise." 

"  America  is  lovely,"  replied  Lillie,  only  it  takes  for- 
ever to  go  anywhere.  Why,  Mr.  Thorpe,  they  think  noth- 
ing of  a  thousand  mile  trip  by  rail.  But  let  me  tell  you 
about  our  case,  sir;  I  have  more  good  news."  Thorpe 
rubbed  his  thin  hands  together  with  expectation. 

"Why,  surely  you  did  not  find  Charles  in  America?' 
This   unexpected  capture  of  the  truth  caused  Lillie  to 
change  color  slightly. 

"  Better  luck  than  that,"  said  Lillie,  adroitly  parrying 
Thorpe's  unintentionally  embarrassing  question. 

"  You  amaze  me;  be  seated  and  tell  me  all,"  said  Thorpe, 
seating  himself  in  an  adjacent  chair. 

"  Well,"  began  Lillie,  "  you  know  you  always  desired 
so  much  to  find  a  witness  to  prove  that  Lindley  extracted 
the  charge  of  shot  from  Mr.  Landsdowne's  gun?  " 

'  'Yes,  yes,"  repeated  Thorpe,  expectantly. 

"  Well,  we  have  him;  I  have  found  him." 

"Good!  "he  shouted  vehemently,  rising  to  his  feet. 
"  God  be  praised,  two- thirds  of  our  battle  is  won." 

"Not  so  fast,  sir,  for  the  witness  is  only  half-witted." 

"  Never  mind,"  roared  Thorpe,  "  we  will  drill  him.  If 
he  saw  the  act,  Miss  Margate,  and  has  only  half  brains,  I 
will  get  the  truth  out  of  him ;  leave  that  to  me." 

Thorpe  paced  the  floor  with  a  defiant  air ;  but  coming 
down  from  his  elevated  position  at  once  he  humbly  begged 
Miss  Margate's  pardon  for  the  assumption  of  such  egotism. 
"  Why,  my  dear  girl,  you  are  a  generalissimo  of  intellect ; 
how  in  the  wide  world  did  you  make  this  wonderful  dis- 
covery? Ah,  you  are  such  an  assistance  to  me."  And 
the  little  man  restlessly  paced  the  floor  again. 

"Why,  I  met  this — no,  I  must  never  call  him  idiot 


122  THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP. 

again — this  poor  boy,  Peter,  who  works  at  Landsdowne 
Hall.  I  met  him  on  the  road  lugging  a  broken  cart 
to  the  smith's. 

* '  Yes,"  said  Thorpe,  interested. 

"  Well,  I  gave  him  a  hitch,  that  is,  hitched  his  cart  be- 
hind my  gig,  and  pumped  him.  Now,  Mr.  Thorpe,  you 
must  not  think  that  since  I  have  been  to  America  I  have 
learned  to  talk  slang.  But  my !  what  a  time  I  did  have  to 
get  a  word  out  of  the  poor  lad.  But  I  succeeded." 

"  Succeeded !  I'll  warrant  you  did,"  replied  Thorpe  en- 
thusiastically. 

"He  told  me  he  saw  Lindley  extract  the  shot  from 
Mr.  Landsdowne's  gun  and  load  the  musket  with  the  same 
shot." 

"Good!  Good!  Splendid!"  sang  out  Thorpe.  But  at 
once  assuming  a  thoughtful  mood  he  sat  down  and  bit  his 
lips.  Thumping  the  table  he  said  emphatically,  "  I  be- 
lieve I  could  try  the  case  now!" 

"  Mr.  Thorpe,  please  do  try  the  case !"  added  Lillie  with 
equal  vehemence,  rising  from  her  seat. 

"  Girl,  give  me  your  hand;  we'll  do  so;"  and  Lillie  ex- 
tended her  pretty  hand.  Looking  at  each  other  they  be- 
came embarrassed  at  their  ridiculous  demonstrativeness. 

"  Pshaw!  what  are  we  doing?  "  said  Thorpe,  withdraw- 
ing his  delicate  hand.  "  How  can  we  try  the  case  without 
a  defendant  to  defend  ?  " 

"  Perhaps  we  can  produce  the  defendant,"  said  Lillie, 
triumphantly. 

"What!"  said  Thorpe,  "is  he  alive?  you  are  a  little 
witch,  indeed  you  are.  What  else  do  you  know?  Tell 
me,  fairy.  Do  you  know  that  Charles  Landsdowne  is 
well?  "  Thorpe  was  turning  pale. 

Lillie  cast  her  eyes  to  the  floor,  then,  half  boldly,  look- 


JS 
bo 

a 


THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  123 

ing  up,  her  dark  eyes  beamed  on  the  little  lawyer  like  two 
electric  lights.  This  is  to  be  a  secret  too,  she  said,  earn- 
estly, never  taking  her  eyes  from  Thorpe.  I  mean  a  pro- 
fessional secret.  Judge  me  as  a  lawyer  too." 

"  Yes,  I  swear  by  all  the  honor  I  ever  possessed." 

"  Then  Charles  Landsdowne  is  alive  and  well.  I  saw 
him,  and  under  the  circumstances  he  is  as  happy  as  can 
be." 

"  That  settles  it,"  said  Thorpe,  sinking  in  his  chair.  "I 
always  believed  you  smart,  now  you're  great.  You're 
mighty.  You  are  worth  a  kingdom.  I  have  nothing 
more  to  say.  You  are  a  heroine  and  I  will  secure  the  ac- 
quittal of  Charles  Landsdowne  or  never  show  my  face 
again  before  a  bar  of  justice." 

Lillie,  happy  with  the  thought  of  having  confessed  her 
knowledge  to  such  good  purpose,  proceeded  down  the 
steps.  Thorpe  followed  to  open  the  door  that  led  to  the 
street,  saying:  "  Miss  Margate,  you  can  send  him  word  to 
come  home  as  soon  as  you  like.  God  bless  you  I  Good- 
byl" 


Tke  Millionaire  .Tramp  9. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

The  Tuppers  gave  a  party  shortly  after  their  return, 
and  all  the  elite  of  Maidestone  and  the  surrounding  coun- 
try were  present. 

Miss  Lillie  Margate  was  the  belle  of  the  evening,  taste- 
fully dressed  in  orange  and  black  satin,  her  pale  face,  dark 
brown  eyes  and  still  darker  hair,  forming  a  superb  con- 
trast. Entirely  devoid  of  jewelry  and  ornaments,  she  was 
unlike  the  other  young  ladies  present,  who  were  bedecked 
to  almost  a  vulgar  degree  with  the  family  diamonds  and 
ancient  jewelry  their  mothers  had  worn.  Lillie  shone 
forth  among  them  resplendent  with  good  sense  and  mod- 
est gracefulness,  which  are  purer  and  showier  than  dia- 
monds. 

Sir  Richard  Cartwright,  a  friend  of  the  Tuppers  from 
London,  and  one  of  the  noted  members  of  a  great  social 
club  of  that  metropolis,  was  among  the  guests  of  the 
evening. 

Cartwright  was  about  thirty-one,  tall  and  handsome; 
one  of  those  clean,  boyish  faces,  illuminated  by  a  pair  of 
what  girls  call  roguish  eyes,  the  very  kind  most  young  la- 
dies admire  and  obey. 

Reared  in  the  atmosphere  of  the  dazzling  city,  amidst 
all  its  pomps,  vanities,  gaieties,  dissipations,  follies  and 
foibles,  it  would  simply  have  been  impossible  for  a  man 
possessing  the  wealth  and  connections,  added  to  the  hilar- 
ious nature  of  Sir  Richard ,  to  remain  what  the  world 


THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  125 

calls  an  "  eminently  respectable  and  exemplary  young 
man,"  but  which,  unquestionably,  his  face  would  indicate- 
Once  in  a  while  we  meet  men  of  such  clear  skin  and 
juvenile  features,  that  they  may  go  upon  a  protracted  spree 
for  ten  days,  sober  up,  take  a  pill,  half  a  gallon  of  seltzer, 
or  both,  one  good  whole  night's  sleep,  and  then  turn  up 
the  following  evening  at  a  party,  looking  the  picture  of 
unadulterated  innocence.  A  glorious  catch  for  mammas 
with  marriageable  daughters,  or  spinsters  who  are  filter- 
ing into  the  golden  afternoon  of  life. 

Richard  could  spree,  dissipate,  be  one  of  the  innumer- 
able owls  of  London  one  evening,  the  next  attend  Lady 
Cawthorne's  grand  reception,  with  a  smile  as  innocent  in 
its  expression  as  though  copied  from  one  ot  Raphael's 
Cherub's. 

Lillie  Margate,  although  a  girl  of  uncommon  sense  and 
far  superior  to  the  average  country  miss  in  intelligence 
and  it  might  be  added,  grit,  had  never  yet  in  her  youthful 
career  run  across  this  particular  kind  of  man.  And  Sir 
Richard,  somewhat  tired  of  the  chronic  shams  of  the  city 
society,  the  laced  and  painted  belles  with  artificial  man- 
ners and  manufactured  beauty,  though  even  such  were  far 
too  good  for  him,  at  once  became  deeply  interested  in  the 
evening's  belle. 

Old,  professional  roues  are  always  attracted  by  innocence 
and  maidenly  modesty  in  preference  to  forward  girls,  who 
boldly,  though  perhaps  not  intentionally,  invite  their  at- 
tention. 

Thus  Sir  Richard,  following  in  their  footsteps,  singled 
out  Lillie  Margate  fifteen  minutes  after  the  amusements 
and  dancing  had  commenced. 

Mrs.  Tupper  introduced  him  as  their  particular  London 
friend,  and  was  sure  Miss  Margate  would  be  highly  enter- 


126  THE  AULLIONAIBE  TRAMP. 

tained  by  him  with  his, stories  of  the  great  city.  The 
dancing  had  recommenced,  and  Sir  Richard,  an  expert 
waltzer,  delighted  Lillie,  who  never  had  met  such  a  part- 
ner in  Maidestone  society. 

After  the  second  quadrille,  which  she  danced  with  young 
Tupper,  Sir  Richard  gallantly  invited  her  to  be  seated, 
and  proceeding  to  a  settee  in  the  back  parlor  entertained 
her  during  the  time  of  the  next  set  with  some  of  his  witty 
stories.  He  spoke  of  Lady  Cawthorne's  receptions,  and 
how  jolly  they  were,  and  after  picturing  in  glowing  terms 
the  many  beauties  he  had  seen,  he  wound  up  by  saying,  as 
he  peered  straight  into  Lillie's  grand  face  with  his  inno- 
cent, boyish  eyes : 

"  But  you,  my  dear  Miss  Margate,  are  the  most  graceful 
and  lovely  of  them  all." 

Now  it  would  be  absurd  to  say  that  this  country  girl, 
who  was  almost  a  stranger  to  the  art  of  flattery,  especially 
when  fired  from  a  battery  like  Sir  Richard  Cartwright,  did 
not  receive  a  certain  impression.  She  did.  She  thought 
he  was  one  of  the  wittiest  men  she  had  ever  met.  She 
had,  for  the  nonce,  almost  forgotten  Charles  Landsdowne, 
away  off,  an  exile  in  another  land,  and  as  the  dancing 
ceased,  the  lamps  turned  down  and  the  guests  depart- 
ed, leaving  her  alone  with  the  Tuppers  and  Sir  Richard  in 
the  great  parlors  of  the  Tupper  mansion,  an  inclination 
stole  over  her  to  know  more  of  this  city  lord. 

Connoisseurs  in  the  art  of  love-making  know  precisely 
when  to  stop  to  enable  the  opposite  sex  to  have  a  chance, 
and  it  could  have  been  noticed  that  Sir  Richard 
devoted  the  balance  of  the  time  between  the  closing  of 
the  ball  and  retiring  time  relating  some  of  his  witty  yarns 
to  the  infinite  amusement  of  Miss  Tupper,  while  Lillie  sat 
listening  attentively  in  an  easy  chair,  with  her  hand  in 


THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  127 

Mrs.  Tapper's,  with  whom  she  occasionally  spoke  of  their 
American  trip. 

As  Lillie  passed  up  stairs  with  Miss  Tupper  to  retire, 
the  hour  hand  of  the  old-fashioned  clock  in  the  hall  point- 
ed to  three.  Cartwright  stood  at  the  bottom  leaning 
against  the  banisters.  Looking  up,  he  said,  as  if  to  both : 

"  Oh,  could  this  delightful  evening  never  end!  Good 
night !  good  night !  Thrice  happy  be  thy  dreams." 

But  a  few  minutes  later,  could  the  reader  have  gazed 
into  the  secret  sanctuary  of  the  maiden's  apartment,  he 
might  have  discerned  the  graceful  form  of  Lillie  Margate, 
clothed  in  the  snowy  vestments  of  the  night,  kneeling  by 
her  bedside  with  clasped  hands  in  prayer.  Praying  for 
whom?  One  trusting  heart  away  across  the  fathomless 
deep,  and  as  she  offered  up  her  prayer  she  failed  not  to  ask 
that  her  wandering  lover  might  be  brought  back  safely  to 
enjoy  again  the  comforts  and  pleasures  of  a  happy  home. 

The  morning  came,  and  Lillie  and  Miss  Tupper  hastened 
to  prepare  for  breakfast.  Cartwright,  thoroughly  accus- 
tomed to  late  hours,  was  out  walking  about  the  premises 
enjoying  a  whiff  of  the  morning  air. 

The  first  thing  Miss  Tupper  asked  the  maid  as  they 
reached  the  parlor,  was : 

"  Has  Sir  Eichard  arisen?  " 

"  Yes'm,  he's  been  out  these  two  hours,  mum." 

"Yes,  indeed,  there  he  is  out  in  the  front  garden. 
Let  us  go  out,  Lillie,"  said  Miss  Tupper. 

Lillie,  throwing  a  red  shawl  of  Mrs.  Margate's  over  her 
shoulders,  and  placing  Mr.  Tupper's  weather-beaten  hat, 
twice  too  large  for  her,  on  her  head,  caving  it  in  on  the 
top,  and  pulling  one  side  down  three  inches  lower  than  the 
other,  and  looking  prettier  than  if  decorated  with  a  Parisian 
bonnet  of  the  latest  style,  sallied  out  indifferently. 


128  THE   MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP. 

Had  she  dressed  in  her  best  the  flatterer  would  have 
concluded  at  once,  "  After  me,  by  Jove,"  but  with  the  old 
red  shawl  all  twisted  over  her  graceful  shoulder  and  that 
terrific  hat,  her  face  fresh  as  the  sparkling  dew  still  hang- 
ing on  the  blades  of  grass,  perfectly  unconscious  of  his 
presence,  added  an  irresistible  charm  in  his  eyes.  Rich- 
ard was  delighted  to  see  them. 

"You  both  look  charming  (Poor  Miss  Tupper  was 
one  of  the  homeliest  girls  in  the  city)  after  your  evening's 
dissipation." 

"  Indeed!"  replied  Miss  Tupper  with  a  gratified  smile. 

"  Oh!  how  I  should  like  to  ]  ve  out  in  the  country  and 
inhale  this  fresh  air  into  my  London  lungs  every  morning, 
instead  of  the  everlasting  fog,  dampness  and  miasma," 
Richard  said,  swelling  out  his  narrow  chest  and  hitting 
himself  like  an  athlete. 

"  However,  you  are  a  very  fair  specimen  of  miasmatic 
influences,"  quoth  Lillie. 

"  I  supposed  they  did  not  rise  so  early  in  London  as  we 
do,"  joined  in  Miss  Tupper. 

"  Sometimes  my  duties  detain  me  late  in  the  evening, 
and  then  I  occasionally  take  a  late  breakfast." 

He  had  not  gotten  up  before  eleven  o'clock  for  two 
weeks. 

"  I  was  out  at  daylight,  listening  to  the  birds.  What  a 
lovely  day  it  will  be.  I  should  have  aroused  you  both 
and  taken  you  for  a  long  walk.  I  am  so  fond  of  a  stroll, 
especially  when  I  have  such  charming  company." 

Lillie  and  Miss  Tupper  laughed. 

"You  are  a  born  flatterer,  I  think,"  said  Lillie. 

"  No,  now  don't  say  that,  Miss  Margate,  because  I  do 
so  detest  intentional  flattery.  Let  me  qualify  then  by 
saying  you  both  look  lovely  after  your  delightful  party. 


THE   MILLIONAIRE   Til  AMP.  129 

You  know  I  believe  that  in  the  morning,  after  being  up  late, 
one  feels  really  better  than  if  he  had  secured  a  full  night's 
rest.  A  party,  especially  if  enjoyable,  braces  one  up  and 
brings  the  good  nature  to  the  surface." 

"  Papa  wants  us  all  to  visit  the  mills  this  afternoon." 

One  of  the  largest  nail  mills  in  this  section  of  England, 
and  of  which  John  Tupper  was  president. 

"  How  would  it  do  to  take  a  drive  this  morning  down 
to  Seven  Oaks  and  visit  some  of  mamma's  relatives?  "  said 
Fanny  Tupper. 

"  Anywhere  you  say,  I  am  at  your  disposal  for  the  day," 
replied  his  lordship. 

Lillie  remarked,  "  I  must  go  home  to  day." 

' '  No,  you  shan't  do  anything  of  the  sort.  You  shall 
just  stay  till  to-morrow,"  rejoined  Fanny. 

Cartwright,  too,  had  promised  to  be  back  in  London  by 
evening,  but  he  would  like  exceedingly  well  to  visit  the 
mills,  as  he,  aside  from  being  interested  as  a  stockholder, 
was  anxious  to  witness  the  performance  of  a  new  Ameri- 
can nail  mill,  lately  introduced  (although  all  the  interest 
he  took  in  the  nail  mill  was  very  slight). 

"  Well,  there  is  the  breakfast  bell,  anyway.  That  we 
can  all  agree  upon.  A  cup  of  tea,"  said  Fanny. 

The  morning  breeze  was  bracing  and  acted  as  an  appe- 
tizer. Mrs.  Tupper  was  fatigued  and  begged  to  be  ex- 
cused. 

"  We  ought  to  have  four  to  make  a  party,"  exclaimed 
Fanny. 

"Never  mind,  never  mind,"  said  Lillie,  fearing  a  part- 
ner for  Fanny  might  cause  Sir  Richard  to  prove  too  mo- 
nopolizing. Sir  Richard  stroked  his  chest  again  as  he 
walked  down  the  piazza  and  again  complimented  the 
country  air : 


THE   MILLIONAIRE   Til  AMP. 

"  Oh,  what  a  magnificent  drive  we  will  have!  " 

The  family  carriage,  a  big,  lumbering  vehicle  but, 
withal,  comfortable,  soon  appeared. 

"None  but  honest,  practical  men  like  John  Tupper 
would  own  such  a  rig  as  that,"  sighed  Cartwright,  as  he 
handed  the  young  ladies  in  one  by  one. 

They  drove  along  the  turnpike.  The  day  proved  indeed 
lovely;  spring  had  conic.  The  apple  trees  were  budding 
forth  in  blossoming  splendor;  the  sweet  cadences  of  the 
robin  and  lark  were  wafted  over  the  new  green  meadows,  the 
sparrows  flitted  from  fence  to  fence  twittering  their  merry 
chorus.  The  old-fashioned  vine- clad  cottages  by  the  road- 
side, and  the  fairest  face  in  Kent  opposite,  all  charmed 
Sir  Richard  to  a  degree  he  had  not  experienced  since  child- 
hood. 

The  day  before  them  was  one  of  those  that  calls 
back  from  the  past  the  tranquil  days  of  childhood, 
the  sunny  ,days  of  long  ago,  and  brings  to 
us  peace.  The  busy  working  of  the  brain  stands  still; 
the  accumulation  of  worldly  anxiety  disappears.  Fear, 
remorse,  jealousy,  and  all  the  weak  emotions  of  the  heart, 
are  absent,  and  we  find  ourselves  as  in  a  peaceful  sea,  sail- 
ing amidst  golden  islands  of  pleasant  thoughts,  and  we  are 
happy;  and,  true  to  life,  such  serene  moments  frequently 
usher  in  some  bitter  disappointment. 

The  excursion  was  full  of  joy.  They  sang, 
laughed,  and  made  fun  of  everything  they  saw  sus- 
ceptible of  ridicule.  They  acted  like  school  children.  At 
length  Seven  Oaks  was  reached.  The  party  dined  at  an 
old-fashioned  inn — this  was  done  to  continue  the  merri- 
ment. 

"  It  will  kill  us  to  visit  mamma's  staid,  matter-of-fact 
sister,"  said  Fanny. 


THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  131 

u  Yes,  but  you  must  deliver  your  message,"  replied 
Lillie. 

So  they  decided  to  drive  over  to  "  Aunt  Martha's  "  house 
and  deliver  it. 

Fanny  got  out  of  the  carriage,  leaving  Lillie  alone  with 
Sir  Richard. 

The  merriment  ceased. 

Lillie  sat  in  the  corner  of  the  large  carriage  diagonally 
opposite  and  as  far  away  from  Cartwright  as  she  could 
get. 

"Do  you  often  come  to  Maidestone,  Sir  Richard?  "  she 
said. 

"  No,  it  ia  over  a  year  since  I  visited  the  mills,  and  then 
I  remained  only  till  the  next  train.  Now  I  have  enjoyed 
myself  so  richly  I  shall  come  again,  and  if  I  do  I  wonder 
if  I  shall  see  you.  You,  I  mean  in  particular,  who 
have  made  it  so  extremely  entertaining  for  me.  In  fact, 
to  tell  the  truth,  Miss  Margate,  I  almost  dislike  to  return 
so  soon,  leaving  behind  me  " — he  hesitated  as  if  in  doubt 
to  proceed — ' '  such — such — " 

"  Pleasant  memories  of  the  party  at  Tupper's,"  said  Lil- 
lie, helping  him  out. 

"  Yes.  Well,  yes,  the  party — and  the  waltz  we 
had." 

"  Now,  now,  you  who  have  attended  such  grand  balls 
and  receptions  in  London  must  have  looked  upon  last 
night's  affair  as  tame  in  comparison." 

"  I  do  not  always  have  such  a  partner  as  I  had  last 
night,"  he  answered,  innocently. 

"  Compliments  again,"  responded  Lillie;  "  Sir  Richard, 
I  am  beginning  to  believe,  is  synonymous  with  flatterer." 

"  Truth  is  not  flattery,"  he  said,  with  another  of  his 
cherubic  smiles. 


132  THE   MILLIONAIRE   TKA3IP. 

"  Thanks,  then,  for  your  compliment;  but  you  cannot 
consider  me  a  perfect  waltzer,  Sir  Richard." 

"  I  may  not  be  a  competent  judge,  but  your  dancing 
pleased  me,"  he  said,  emphasising  the  last  word,  "and 
that  was  why  I  was  so  happy  last  night — yes  and  all  day, 
too.  It  must  be  the  heavenly  light  of  your  eyes,  or  some 
other  wonderful  influence  you  young  women  possess  over 
us  poor  mortal  men."  He  sighed.  He  looked  at  Lillie 
with  an  expression  of  sadness  upon  his  handsome,  boyish 
face. 

"It  was  the  variety  of  a  country  party,  and  forming 
the  acquaintance  of  a  stupid  country  girl,  that  made  the 
spice  of  your  visit,  I  think,"  said  Lillie,  laughing,  and  dis- 
playing a  row  of  pearly  teoth. 

"You  are  a  little  witch,  a  charming  little  witch, 
and  you  have  bewitched  me,  I  am  afraid." 

"Pshaw!  Flatterers  are  not  very  susceptible  victims 
to  the  black  art." 

"  You  don't  mean  that,"  he  replied,  again  assuming  his 
boyish,  innocent  air. 

"  Listen,  Miss  Margate,  I  have  a  friend,  Lady  Caw- 
thorne,  who  gives  a  grand  reception  in  London  next 
month ;  how  I  wish  you  could  come.  I  will  have  her  en- 
close your  family  an  invitation  if  you  will  allow  me.  You 
must  come.  If  you  do  not  shine  as  the  beauty  of  the  even- 
ing I  will  confess  my  error,"  said  Sir  Richard  emphatic- 
ally. 

Lillie  found  she  was  getting  into  deep  water  with  this 
innocent  young  lord,  and  she  felt  half  inclined  to  refuse 
this  strange  invitation. 

"  A  young  country  maiden  may  propose,  but  wise 
mammas  dispose  in  this  case,"  she  said. 

"  Yes,  but  Archibald  Margate,  Member  of  Parliament, 


THE   MILLIONAIRE   THAMP.  133 

certainly  will  not  refuse  to  acquaint  his  daughter  with  hia 
peers.  Why,  I  believe  a  young  lady  forfeits  the  best  part 
of  her  existence  when  refused  the  enchanting  whirl  of  ex- 
citement in  the  gay  society  of  London." 

Lillie  remained  silent. 

"  Think  what  a  chance  for  a  young  belle,  Miss  Margate, 
here  you  are  shut  out  from  the  world." 

He  was  talking  eloquently  but  still  there  was  some- 
thing in  his  manner  that  the  keen  perception  of  the  coun- 
try maiden  discerned  was  of  a  selfish  motive. 

"Yes,  but  where  ignorance  is  bliss, 'tis  folly  to  go  to 
London  to  see  these  grand  things  and  then  become  unhap- 
py. Better  a  happy  country  girl  than  a  languid  society 
belle.  I  quote  your  very  words." 

"  Here  is  Miss  Fanny  coming,  you  will  not  mention  our 
conversation  to  her;"  he  spoke  earnestly.  "  You  will 
come ;  please  say  you  will.  I  believe  you  are  the  most  sensi- 
ble young  woman  I  ever  met" 

"  Mamma  must  be  consulted,"  was  the  only  answer  Lillie 
gave  him. 

"  Thanks,"  said  Sir  Richard,  leaning  forward  to  kiss 
Lillie's  hand,  which  she  quickly  withdrew,  her  dark  eyes 
flashing  like  fire,  while  upon  her  lovely  face  there  appeared 
an  expression  of  haughty  pride,  which  seemed  to  say 
"  Be  you  prince  or  nobleman  I  allow  no  one  to  take 
such  liberty,"  which  only  added  an  additional  charm  to 
her  exquisite  face,  and  caused  the  irrepressible  young  lord 
to  fairly  worship  her.  He  jumped  out  of  the  carriage  to 
assist  Miss  Fanny,  and  they  soon  resumed  their  hilarity. 

Returning  to  Maidestone  they  visited  the  nail  mills, 
the  manager,  Mr.  Thomas,  escorting  them.  Thomas  was 
a  thorough  mechanic,  artizan,  and  gentleman,  a  happy  and 
extremely  useful  combination  in  any  country. 


134  THE  MILLIONAIRE  TKAMP. 

He  knew  a  great  deal  more  than  he  dared  or  cared  to  tell 
about  Sir  Richard,  and  when  he  saw  Miss  Margate's  sweet 
face  in  his  company,  he  suspected  that  the  attraction  to 
the  mills  for  his  lordship  was  the  company  and  not  the 
supposed  interest  in  their  welfare 

The  walk  about  the  seething  furnaces  and  mechanical 
contrivances  proved  very  interesting  to  Lillie,  as  Sir  Rich- 
ard discussed  their  various  uses. 

"  Now  those  men,"  he  said,  "  are  feeders;"  pointing  to 
the  nailers ;  ' '  see  what  a  respectable  lot  they  are.  They 
draw  very  large  pay,  I  tell  you — far  more  than  many  law- 
yers or  rectors  of  country  churches. 

"These  poor  fellows,"  pointing  to  the  feeders,  "  work 
harder  and  do  not  get  half  the  pay." 

"  Quite  unfair,"  said  Lillie,  looking  them  over,  "but 
they  dress  better  and  seem  to  pay  little  attention  to  their 
surroundings." 

Thomas  was  nearly  choking  as  he  suppressed  a  good 
laugh.  "  He  has  got  it  precisely  wrong,"  he  said  to  Miss 
Fanny. 

Fanny  replied,  "  Sir  Richard  seems  to  be  very  much  en- 
tertained with  my  friend,  Miss  Margate,  does  he  not?  " 

"  How  long  have  they  been  acquainted?  "  said  Thomas, 
with  a  business  air. 

"  Only  a  short  time.  They  met  at  our  house  last  night 
for  the  first  tune.  He  is  so  nice,"  said  Fanny,  with  a  half 
sigh. 

Thomas  hesitated  a  moment  before  replying. 

"  Yes,  he  is  nice,  that  is,  what  young  ladies,  who  do  not 
know  such  a  man,  usually  term  nice." 

"  Why,  Mr.  Thomas,  what  do  you  meau?  " 

"  I  must  only  give  you  a  hint.  It  would  not  do  for  me 
to  say  any  more,  Miss  Fanny.  He  visits  a  certain  fashion- 


THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  135 

able  lady  iu  London,  Lady  Cawthorne;  he  may  desire  to 
invite  you  and  Miss  Margate  to  attend  one  of  these  recep- 
tions ;  all  I  must  say  to  you  is,  Don't  go !  " 

The  carriage  brought  back  the  merry  visitors.  Sir 
Richard  returned  to  London.  Fanny  Tupper  surprised 
Lillie  by  whispering  to  her  as  they  kissed  and  parted: 

"  Don't  go  to  Lady  Cawthorne's." 

*  *  *  #  *  # 

James  Darrow  had  passed  a  restless  night  in  his  Ameri- 
can abode;  occasionally  he  lost  himself  in  a  fitful  slumber, 
but  he  heard  the  clock  strike  all  the  hours  till  daylight, 
when  he  fell  into  a  deep  sleep.  In  a  dream  he  thought 
he  saw  Lillie  with  her  face  turned  away  from  him.  He 
was  not  superstitious,  but  he  had  never  seen  her  in  his 
imaginings,  except  when  the  light  of  her  face  beamed  up- 
on him  like  a  guiding  star,  conveying  hope  and  strength. 
He  awoke  and  tossed  about  upon  his  pillow  uneasily.  "  It 
could  not  be.  Turned  from  me  I  Oh,  could  I  but  see  her 
face  again!  "  he  exclaimed.  "  One  reassuring  look,  one 
sweet  smile." 

*  »  *  *  *  * 

A  few  days  after  Lillie  returned  home  she  decided  to  go 
to  Thorpe's  office  again,  and  arrange  to  send  for  Charles. 

She  had  struggled  hard  to  overcome  her  inclination  to 
attend  Lady  Cawthorne's  reception  in  London.  Her 
mother  favored  it,  which  made  it  harder  still. 

"  What  has  my  poor  Charles  suffered?  What  a  selfish 
girl  I  am.  Pooh!  Sir  Richard  I  Pshaw!  Nothing  but 
a  flirt  and  flatterer !  "  She  pouted  her  pretty  mouth  and 
shook  her  head.  "  I  will  not  go  there  and  be  made  a  tar- 
get for  their  critical  eyes.  I  won't  go !  "  and  she  stamped 
that  graceful  foot  and  jarred  the  lamps  in  her  room. 

But  then  the  loadstone  of  curiosity  will  draw  with 


136  THE   MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP. 

twice  the  strength  of  a  woman's  determination.  Then  a 
doubt  came. 

"  Perhaps  I  am  doing  a  very  foolish  thing  to  keep  up 
this  clandestine  courtship  with  Charles  Landsdowne,"  she 
sighed.  "  It  may  cause  me  more  trouble  than  I  can  bear. 
What  shall  I  do?  I  will  go  to  the  London  party.  No,  I 
won't.  What  a  vacillating  thing  I  am.  I  don't  know 
what  to  do.  Yes;  I  will  be  true  to  my  first  and  only 
love,"  and  she  burst  into  a  flood  of  tears. 

Believing  a  ride  would  do  her  good  and  having  promised 
to  mail  some  letters  for  her  father,  she  hadWallie  hitch  up 
the  pony  and  went  to  town. 

"  I  will  speak  to  Thorpe,  the  enthusiastic  but  at  the 
same  time  constant,  matter-of-fact  Thorpe." 

Arriving  at  the  lawyer's  office  she  found  Thorpe  engaged 
with  Jerricks,  the  detective.  Thorpe  arose,  and  dismissed 
Jerricks.  He  was  so  excited  about  his  interview  with 
the  detective  that  he  unintentionally  omitted  to  salute  his 
"  lovely  ally,"  as  he  called  Lillie,  except  as  a  farmer  would 
salute  a  merchant  to  whom  he  wanted  to  sell  a  load  of 
hay. 

' '  Your  view  is  correct.  Jerricks  says  you  have  struck 
it.  His  theory  exactly,  and  he  is  willing  to  stake  his 
reputation  now  that  Lindley  fired  the  fatal  shot.  He  has 
discovered  by  the  aid  of  a  microscope,  that  the  pickles 
were  pulled  out  and  not  fired.  Why,  the  parts  of  the  very 
cartridge  have  been  found,  pulled  to  pieces,  not  exploded. 
The  spiral  screw  on  the  end  of  the  ramrod  fits  the  holes 
made  in  the  cartridge,  and  Charles  Landsdowne  is  safe." 

The  latter  sentence  was  delivered  with  a  powerful  ora- 
torical emphasis. 

After  a  few  minutes'  conversation  Lillie  talked  of  the 


THE   MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  137 

party  at  Tupper's,  and  mentioned  Sir  Richard  Cartwright's 
name.  As  the  words  escaped  from  her  lips,  Thorpe,  who 
had  resumed  his  seat,  jumped  to  his  feet,  and  exclaimed: 

"  The  biggest  scoundrel  in  England !  " 

"  Why,  you  astonish  me,  Mr.  Thorpe." 

"  Yes,  my  dear  young  lady,  but  I  know  what  I  am  talk- 
ing about.  Have  nothing  to  do  with  him,  Miss  Margate. 
Avoid  him  as  you  would  a  snake.  Why!  Why,  this  is 
terrible !  Terrible  but  true,  and  many  true  things  are 
terrible,  and  I  could  tell  you  things  about  him  which  are 
indeed  terrible!  The  young  monster!  Stories  which 
would  be  unfit  for  your  innocent  ears !  The  young  heart- 
breaker  !  " 

Lillie  thanked  Thorpe  and  wended  her  way  to  Tupper's. 

"  Heart-breaker  is  it,  indeed!  Oh,  that  is  not  all!  I 
am  not  afraid  of  him,  the  egotist." 

Upon  meeting  Fanny  she  was  still  more  surprised  to 
learn  that  Mrs.  Tupper  and  Fanny  had  been  invited  to 
Lady  Cawthorne's  reception,  and  Mrs.  Tupper  had  re- 
solved to  go,  and  that  was  all  Fanny  could  say. 

"  But,  Fanny,  what  in  the  world  made  you  whisper 
those  alarming  and  portentous  words  when  we  last  met, 
and  then  so  decisively  change  your  mind? "  said  Lillie, 
somewhat  provoked. 

"  Why,  I  must  tell  you  all,  my  pet,"  said  Fanny,  tak- 
ing Lillie  by  the  hand,  patronizingly.  "  Mr.  Thomas,  the 
superintendent  of  the  mill,  gave  me  a  hint  about  Sir  Rich- 
ard and  Lady  Cawthorne,  and  I  mentioned  it  to  mamma 
when  the  invitation  came,  but  she  only  said,  'Fudge! 
that  Mr.  Thomas  has  always  some  wonderful  gossip  to  re- 
late, or  knows  of  some  great  strike  or  happening  about  to 
take  place,  which  never  does.'  Mamma  does  not  believe 
a  thing  against  Sir  Richard,  except  that  he  may  be  a  little 


138  THE    MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP. 

wild,  and  she  says  his  face  indicates  that  even  that  accusa 
tion  is  exaggerated." 

This  strategy  of  Sir  Richard's  in  inviting  the  Tuppers 
was  a  clinching  argument,  and  Lillie  determined  to  go, 
come  what  would. 

On  her  way  home  Lillie  called  again  at  Thorpe's  to 
learn  when  she  should  convey  news  to  Landsdowne,  Be- 
fore she  left  Thorpe  had  dictated  a  cablegram,  which  read : 

"DARROW  : — All  safe,  return  at  once. 

(Signed,)  THORPE." 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

CURIOSITY. 

"  He  who  ascends  to  mountain-tops  shall  find 
The  loftiest  peaks  most  wrapped  in  clouds  and  snow." 

The  amount  of  curiosity  developed  in  a  young  woman  of 
twenty  has  never  yet  been  ascertained  by  weight  or 
measurement ;  suffice  it  to  say  that  it  will  at  times  out- 
weigh all  the  sound  judgment  with  which  she  may  be 
endowed,  and  occasionally  rush  her  into  the  very  jaws  of 
danger  and  intrigue. 

Lillie  Margate  had,  after  her  visit  to  Thorpe's,  fully  de- 
cided not  to  attend  Lady  Cawthorne's  reception.  But  the 
Tupper's  were  going,  and,  worse  than  all,  she  had  just 
noticed  in  the  Illustrated  London  News  a  graphic  descrip- 
tion and  elaborate  artistic  representation  of  a  late  royal 
reception.  "Mamma  is  almost  crazy  to  have  me  go;  I 
will  not  be  over-polite  to  him.  Sir !  Sir !  Sir!  The  horrid 
monster!"  she  exclaimed,  as  she  shook  her  graceful  little 
head  with  determination. 

******* 

On  the  deck  of  one  of  the  magnificent  vessels  of  the  In- 
man  Line  one  peaceful  night,  Charles  Landsdowne  sat 
watching  the  long  line  of  silver  the  calm  sea  reflected  from 
the  moon.  He  had  smoked  his  third  cigar. 

He  was  in  a  quiet  frame  of  mind,  meditating  over  his 
immediate  future.  Every  revolution  of  the  great  wheel 
was  carrying  him  nearer  to  .England  and  those  he  loved. 
Now  came  to  his  vision  the  same  pale  and  lovely  girl.  Her 

The  Million^ ire   Tramp  10. 


140  THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP. 

eyes  he  would  soon  look  into.  Her  encouraging  words  soon 
hear. 

Only  to  be  near  her,  only  to  see  her  face  again. 

"  All  safe,  return  at  once."  These  words  were  a  light 
from  a  light-house  peering  through  the  darkness  of  his  dis- 
content, bringing  hope  and  safety  to  his  shipwrecked  soul. 

"  God  bless  her,"  he  would  say,  and  then  cruel  fancies 
would  arise  and  horrible  suspicions  would  come. 

"Perhaps  it  may  not  turn  out  as  she  supposes.  Never 
mind,  Heaven  protect  her.  Should  fate  turn  against  me 
I  will  thank  her  and  bless  her,  respect  and  love  her  for  all 
she  has  done."  Old  Tom's  haggard  features  came  before 
him.  The  wrecked  life,  a  grand  and  eloquent  lecture  on 
the  misfortunes  of  an  honest  man.  "Poor  old  man,  what 
a  heart,  to  leave  me  the  wealth  that  should  have  been  used 
in  his  life  for  his  comfort  and  support." 

A  few  days  after  the  vessel  steamed  proudly  into  Liver- 
pool, and  Landsdowne  went  immediately  to  London,  where 
he  intended  to  converse  with  Thorpe  before  giving  himself 
into  the  hands  of  the  law. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

THE  SQUIEE  AND  THE  CLUB. — "  CASTLES  IN  THE  AIR." 

Squire  Landsdowne,  since  the  departure  of  his  son  and 
the  election  to  parliament  of  Archibald  Margate,  seemed  to 
lose  all  interest  in  Landsdowne  Hall.  He  visited  London 
quite  often  and  there  became  acquainted  with  several 
members  of  a  mercantile  club;  being  an  old  gentleman  of 
convivial  tastes,  he  soon  formed  the  habit  of  enjoying  his 
evenings  away  from  home ;  so  much  so,  that  it  soon  got 
whispered  about  the  neighborhood,  that  the  old  Squire 
was  taking  his  dinners  too  late  and  his  potations  too  fre- 
quently. 

Every  business  or  social  club  has  its  Mulberry  Sellers, 
and  it  was  to  the  great  projects  and  marvelous  schemes  of 
a  certain  enthusiast  and  visionary  named  Felix  Brandon, 
that  Squire  Landsdowne  gave  ear  and  thought. 

One  night  Mr.  Brandon  had  a  wonderful  scheme  to 
elucidate.  It  was  to  buy  up  the  stock  of  a  certain  foreign 
corporation,  "  water  it,"  and  thereby  reap  a  golden 
harvest. 

"  An  entire  mint  in  it,  my  dear  Squire,"  Felix  would 
say,  with  his  arm  on  the  Squire's  shoulder  familiarly,  con- 
veying in  his  tone  a  magnetic  enthusiasm  which  would 
almost  raise  the  confiding  Squire's  hair. 

Mr.  Brandon  had  made  a  study  of  the  manner  of 
approaching  men  with  capital.  He  had  done  this  all  his 
life.  There  was  an  air  of  profound  secrecy  in  his  man- 


142  TELE   MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP. 

ner.  No  one  should  overhear  their  conversation.  They 
sat  together  in  a  high-backed  old-fashioned  settee,  gazing 
into  the  bright  coals,  the  medium  through  whose  ruddy 
light  are  usually  seen  the  unfinished  and  undefined  mythical 
Spanish  castles,  which  so  seldom  are  completed. 

"  I  am  almost  afraid,"  said  the  Squire,  "  that  it  will  be 
impossible  for  me  to  raise  the  sufficient  sum — £30,000  is 
a  considerable  sum  to  put  in  your  hands  in  a  week,  the 
time  allotted  to  close  this  important  purchase.  I  have 
expended  considerable  on  my  place  during  the  past  few 
years. "  Felix  Brandon,  Esq. ,  put  his  long  forefinger  across 
his  prominent  forehead  and  looked  again  into  the  red  coals 
for  a  full  minute.  Then  sipping  his  half  emptied  glass  of 
port,  he  said  slowly  and  cautiously,  "I  believe  it  will 
take  but  £25,000  at  the  start,  Squire,"  as  if  £25,000  was  a 
mere  trifle  to  such  a  monied  magnate  as  Felix  Brandon, 
Esq.  "  Or,  my  dear  Squire,  how  thoughtless  I  am.  Why? 
I  can  advance  you  part  of  the  sum ;  I  never  thought  of 
that;"  turning  about  on  the  settee  so  as  to  face  the  Squire, 
he  said,  "  I  do  not  really  see  the  necessity  of  your  raising 
one  penny  over  £20,000  at  present.  In  fact  I  am  positive 
I  can  move  the  rest."  Move  was  a  pet  word  with  Brandon. 
He  could  move  anything  with  the  necessary  cash  on  hand. 
The  Squire  was  delighted  at  the  reduction  of  the  sum. 
The  fumes  of  the  port  on  top  of  a  layer  of  good  old  brandy 
which  he  had  taken  at  supper,  were  strengthening  his 
determination  to  go  into  the  scheme. 

Felix  Brandon  was  a  dealer  in  stocks.  He  occupied  an 
office  on  Bond  street  and  dealt  in  all  manner  of  securities. 
He  was  frequently  engaged  by  prominent  bankers  and  cor- 
porations to  unload  stocks  which  by  reason  of  a  prospective 
decline  were  not  considered  good  property.  No  actual 
charge  of  dishonesty  had  ever  been  laid  at  his  door,  but 


THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  143 

he  did  not  stand  as  high  among  the  better  class  of  brokers 
as  he  might.  He  was  reserved  and  told  his  business 
to  no  one.  He  was  visionary  to  such  a  degree  that 
he  had  wrecked  three  fortunes  of  his  own.  At  the 
club  he  was  careful  to  seldom  introduce  any  business 
negotiations  with  other  brokers,  or  members  of  the  Ex- 
change. Knowing  something  of  the  Squire's  nature  by 
observation,  he  had  studied  up  his  wealth;  he  knew,  in  fact, 
that  £20,000  was  about  all  the  Squire  could  well  afford  to 
lose. 

4 'I  will  go  in,"  the  Squire  at  length  remarked,  "I 
can  raise  the  sum." 

"Now,  I  would  suggest  as  a  matter  of  precaution, 
my  doar  Squire,  that  I  guarantee  you  from  any  loss." 
This  was  another  pet  phrase  of  Brandon's — guarantee. 

"  Also  I  know  that  the  stock  of  this  company  can  be  so 
manipulated  that  we  will  clear  ninety  per  cent;  yes,  ninety 
per  cent,  in  three  months.  What  will  the  great  *  M.  P.' 
Margate  say  then?  What  will  all  the  Maidestone  people 
say  then?" 

The  Squire,  looking  again  into  the  ambitious  coals, 
pondered  over  these  pointed  arguments  so  well  put 
by  the  crafty  Brandon.  When  the  sturdy  Squire  once 
made  up  his  mind  he  was  as  firm  as  a  rock.  "  Well,  sir,  I 
will  do  it,"  he  said,  turning  to  Brandon,  whose  nerves 
were  quivering  at  the  Squire's  hesitation. 

"  Let  us  shake  on  it,"  replied  the  adroit  Brandon,  rising 

and  extending  his  trembling  hand. 

******  * 

The  killing  frost  of  life  is  when  we  awake  from  a  dream 
of  confidence  in  a  fellow  mortal,  and  find  that  we  have  not 
only  misplaced  our  confidence,  friendship  and  esteem,  but 
our  funds. 


144  THE   MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP. 

It  took  Squire  Landsdowne  just  one  month  to  discover 
that  Felix  Brandon,  private  banker  and  dealer  in  stocks, 
had  merely  laid  a  trap  for  him ,  baiting  the  same  with 
bombastic  eloquence,  garnished  with  roasted  and  savory 
falsehoods,  and  that  he,  Squire  Landsdowne,  was  the  inno- 
cent and  unsuspecting  rabbit  that  had  been  caught,  cer- 
tainly and  decisively. 

The  wonderful  advantages  of  the  foreign  corporation 
seemed  to  evaporate  into  exceedingly  fine  vapor,  no 
matter  how  much  the  same  stock  was  watered.  It 
was  the  last  meeting  he  had  intended  to  hold  with  Mr.  F. 
Brandon.  His  counsel  advised  him  to  put  no  more  money 
into  the  scheme;  not  even  to  hire  him  and  spend  money  in 
law  fees.  To  commence  criminal  proceedings  against  Mr. 
Brandon  and  his  confederates  was  the  only  means  at  his 
command  to  recover  any  portion  of  his  money,  and  even 
then  the  prospect  of  proving  anything  was  doubtful.  But 
still  retaining  a  remnant  of  faith  in  Brandon,  the  Squire 
called  to  plead  with  him.  The  artful  broker  was  sur- 
prised at  the  demand  of  the  Squire.  "  Why,  we  are  on 
the  very  eve  of  success,"  and  he  begged  and  implored  that 
the  Squire  should  put  in  just  a  few  thousand  more.  Cha- 
grined and  disgusted  the  Squire  left  the  club-room,  slam- 
ming the  door,  and  declared  it  was  the  last  slam  he  would 
ever  give  the  door  of  the  "Merchants',  and  Country  Gen- 
tlemen's Club." 

"  No  son,  no  fortune,  no  friends,"  he  exclaimed  bitterly 
as  he  walked  down  the  steps,  his  voice  full  of  emotion, 
his  eyes  down  in  deep  meditation.  He  almost  stumbled 
into  the  arms  of  a  passer-by,  who  had  evidently  overheard 
his  last  remark.  The  pedestrian  looked  up  hurriedly 
with  an  exclamation  of  joy.  "  My  God,  it  is  my  boy !"  ex- 
claimed the  elder  of  the  two,  as  he  clasped  his  arms 


THE   MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP.  145 

firmly  around  Charles  Landsdowne's  neck  and  wept  like 
a  child. 

All  his  earthly  troubles  were  merged  in  the  one  great 
comfort:  "  My  boy  is  alive  and  safe." 

"  Cheer  up,  father,  never  mind  your  loss.  We  will  go 
to  work  and  make  it  up  again." 

"  Oh,  Charles,  my  darling  boy,  why  did  you  not  let  me 
know  where  you  were.  My  boy!  My  boy!"  ho  repeated, 
keeping  his  strong  arm  tightly  about  him.  "You  will 
never  leave  me  again,  will  you?" 

On  the  way  to  the  station  they  passed  a  brilliantly 
lighted  mansion.  A  grand  ball  was  in  progress.  Charles 
Lanclsdowne  noticed  as  they  walked  by,  the  name  hewed 
in  tho  carriage  foot-stone, — 

CAWTHOENE. 

On  the  train  to  Maidestone  Squire  Landsdowne's  Saxon 
grit  overcame  his  weaker  emotions,  when  he  learned  the 
true  story  of  the  accident,  and  all  the  fight  in  the  old 
man's  nature  was  aroused. 

* '  Not  guilty,  my  boy,  that  is  all  I  want  to  know,  and  I 
dare  the  world,  I  dare  the  world." 


CHAPTER  XXI. 

LADY  CAWTHORNE. 

"No  visor  does  become  black  villainy 
Bo  well  &B  soft  and  tender  flattery/' 

Flattery,  thou  double-faced  siren,  wilt  thoudare  seduce  the 
innocent  and  pure  alike  with  the  brazen  and  the  bad? 

The  great  halls  and  palace  drawing-rooms  of  gay  Lady 

Cawthorne's  elaborate  London  mansion  fairly  gleamed 
with  gasaliers  rich  curtains,  massive  mirrors  with  ponder- 
ous frames,  rare  paintings  of  fabulous  value,  carpets  as 
velvety  as  a  meadow  lawn — all  that  art  could  suggest 
and  wealth  procure. 

Carriages  were  coming,  greetings  exchanged. 

"  What  a  glorious  night  we'll  have,  Simpkins,"  said  Sir 
Eichard  Cartright  to  a  young  swell,  who  leaned  languidly 
against  the  mammoth  staircase. 

"Ah,  yes,  Witchard,"  was  the  effeminate  reply. 

"  By  Jove,  I  won't,  unless  a  certain  party  comes, 
Simp,"  said  Richard,  digging  Mr.  Simpkins  rather  hard  in 
the  ribs. 

"  Say,  old  fellow, p way,  don't  be  so  demonstrative,"  re- 
plied the  swell. 

"  Wait  till  you  see  her — the  belle  of  Kent." 

"Belle  of  Kent!  Ha!  Ha!  Didn't  knaw  Kent 
evahhada  belle,"  and  Mr.  Mortimer  Simpkins  looked  up 
languidly  at  the  bright  roguish  face  of  Sir  Richard  to  see 
if  his  joke  was  appreciated. 

"Wait,  old  man,  till  you  see  her;  wait  till  you   turn 


THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  147 

those  tired  eyes  of  yours  upon  her.  It  will  refresh  them, 
you  old  deceiver,"  and  he  digged  Mr.  Simpkins  again  in 
the  ribs. 

"  It  seems  to  me,  Witchard,  you  are  deucedly  playful  to- 
night ;  would  you,  deah  boy,  exhibit  respwect  for  my  shirt 
fwont,if  not  for  my  wibs?" 

Eichard  moved  away  towards  the  door.  "  I  wish  she 
would  come,"  A  merry  voice  followed  by  a  matronly 
lad}' ;  then  another  light  merry  voice  and  a  very  heavy 
matronly  lady. 

"Good,"  exclaimed  Sir  Bichard,  throwing  away  all 
formality,  and  rushing  to  the  door  he  welcomed  them  like 
a  son  and  a  brother. 

Lillie's  good  resolutions  not  to  be  over  sociable  with  Sir 
Eichard  floated  away  in  the  perfumed  atmosphere  of  the 
gorgeous  parlors. 

Lady  Cawthorne  was  a  woman  who  had  wonderful  control 
over  herself.  Cradled  and  raised  in  a  society  of  London, 
which  glittered  more  by  the  display  of  wealth  than  the 
honest  gleam  of  refinement  and  honor.  She  was  an 
actress  born,  but  had  never  appeared  before  the  foot- 
lights— a  beautiful  society  woman,  with  all  the  graces  that 
the  art  of  etiquette  can  bestow.  Powerful  to  a  wonder- 
ful degree  in  ability  to  entertain.  Offering  to  the  visitor 
a  loving  smile  of  welcome,  so  enthusiastic, — "So  happy  to 
see  you.  You  are  so  welcome!" 

Shaking  both  hands  of  Lillie's  at  once,  and  kissing  her 
fondly,  she  exclaimed:  "  My  dear,  good  girl,  I  am  so 
happy  to  think  you  accepted  my  invitation.  Come  with 
me,  I  will  wait  upon  you  myself." 

Tripping  nimbly  up  stairs,  she  helped  Lillie  and  Mrs. 
Tupper  disrobe.  First  tiino  she  had  done  anything  of 
the  sort  for  years.  When  she  walked  down  stairs  she 


148  THE   MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP. 

hissed  between  her  teeth :  "  The  little  country  minx,  how 
pretty  she  is." 

Lillie  was  robed  magnificently,  but  entirely  void  of 
ornaments.  Every  eye  in  the  room  was  constantly  turn- 
ing upon  her. 

"  Who  is  she?  Who  is  she?  "  asked  several  ladies  of 
Sir  Richard. 

"The  belle  of  Kent!"  he  answered,  proudly. 

The  belle  of  Kent  became  whispered  about,  and  many 
sought  an  introduction.  Lillie  was  at  first  slightly  em- 
barrassed, but  as  the  excitement  increased  and  the  ball 
proceeded,  she  found  herself  becoming  enchanted  by 
the  dazzling  display,  and  her  innocent  heart  palpitated 
with  delight  and  triumph  at  being  regarded  the  belle  of 
the  evening,  where  shone  so  many  lovely  competitors 
for  that  honor. 

As  the  evening  progressed,  Lady  Cawthorne  called  Lil- 
lie to  one  side,  saying  patronizingly  in  her  too  susceptible 
ear:  "  Why,  my  dear,  do  you  know  that  you  have  created 
quite  a  sensation,  you  lovely  little  thing?  I  was  not 
aware  when  Sir  Richard  told  me  he  was  going  to  invite 
the  loveliest  girl  in  Kent  that  I  would  find  his  promise  so 
happily  verified,"  and  she  gave  Lillie  an  affectionate  and 
admiring  kiss. 

An  hour  later  Lady  Cawthorne  stood  in  the  main  hall. 
Looking  through  the  reception-room  door,  she  saw  Sir 
Richard  talking  earnestly  to  Lillie.  Lady  Cawthorne's 
eyes  were  fixed  on  him  like  a  basilisk. 

"  Curse  him  and  his  new-found  country  jade,"  were 
precisely  the  words  this  lady  of  social  rank  spoke.  As 
she  turned  upon  her  dainty  heel  she  almost  ran  into  Mor- 
timer Simpkins,  to  whom  she  laughingly  apologized,  when 
her  heart  was  as  heavy  as  lead. 


THE   MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  149 

This  woman  was  in  love  with  Kichard. 

Henry  Cawthorne,  baronet,  was  wholly  wrapped  in 
business;  owner  and  manager  of  an  immense  fortune.  His 
sole  purpose  in  life  seemed  to  be  the  study  of  its  increase. 
He  was  building  a  railroad  in  India,  and  had  been  absent 
five  months. 

He  cared  nothing  for  society.  "  If  I  can  only  keep  my 
pretty  wife  at  home  with  her  everlasting  receptions  till  I 
have  this  road  running  in  good  shape,"  he  said  to  a  friend, 
"  I  will  consider  I  am  in  excellent  luck." 

He  wrote  to  her  once  a  month. 

His  last  letter  contained  a  full  description  of  a  bridge 
they  were  building  over  a  pass  in  the  mountains.  He  con- 
cluded with  the  following  words  of  affection : 

"  Dear  little  woman,  I  sincerely  hope  you  are  en- 
joying yourself,  I  was  much  pleased  with  the  description 
of  your  last  delightful  reception ;  get  up  another.  Do  any 
thing  you  like  to  pass  the  time,  my  pet,  and  keep  you  in- 
terested till  my  return.  Your  husband, 

CAWTHORNE." 

Sir  Richard  Cartwright  little  believed  when  he  invited 
Lillie  Margate  to  Lady  Cawthorne's  that  before  two 
hours  would  pass  in  her  company  he  would  be  so  head 
over  heels  in  love  with  that  young  country  lady,  that  with- 
out her,  life  to  him  would  be  a  burdensome  blank.  "There 
she  is,"  he  said,  rapturously,  "  and  why  is  it  I  cannot  turn 
my  eyes  from  her  one  moment?  Brace  up,  old  man,"  he 
said  to  himself,  "  and  don't  give  way  to  this  ridiculous 
passion." 

Supper  was  over  and  those  present  were  conversing  in 
small  groups.  Lillie  was  sitting  in  the  front  parlor, 
near  a  window  fronting  .the  main  street.  The  lamps 


150  THE   MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP. 

surrounding  the  mansion  lit  up  the  trees  and  shrubbery. 
Sir  Richard  came  and  asked  permission  to  sit  beside  her, 
which  was  granted.  Sir  Richard  seemed  to  have  lost  his 
cheerfulness. 

"  I  want  to  have  a  little  talk  with  you,"  he  said. 

"  I  wondered  where  you  had  gone,"  Lillie  replied. 

"  I  must  confess  I  was  ungallant  in  not  excusing  my- 
self, but  I  was  afraid  I  might  exceed  my  welcome  by 
pursuing  you  too  ardently.  Why  did  you  come  to  this 
front  window?" 

"  I  love  to  look  out  on  the  street.  It  is  such  a  change 
for  us  from  the  country  to  see  the  brilliantly  lighted 
streets." 

"  How  I  wish  you  lived  in  London;  how  I  could 
enjoy  your  company  to  the  opera  and  the  theatres,  and 
what  a  delightful  time  we  could  all  have.  Lady  Caw- 
thorne  is  so  very  fond  of  you." 

"She  is  a  lovely  lady;  one  of  the  most  fascinating  I 
ever  met." 

"  I  used  to  think  so,"  said  Cartwright,  sadly,  looking 
out  of  the  window,  "  but — well — I  won't  say  it.  You  will 
accuse  me  of  flattering." 

"  Well,  you  are  becoming  so  matter-of-fact,  sir*  of  late, 
that  I  may  have  changed  my  mind  as  to  that." 

"  Now,  you  believe  me  to  be  a  flirt,  Miss  Margate?  " 
He  put  this  question  decisively. 

"Now,  don't  ask  me  such  a  leading  question.  You 
remind  me  of  our  lawyer,  Mr.  Thorpe,  when  you  talk 
that  way." 

At  the  mention  of  this  name  Sir  Richard  changed  color. 

"  Thorpe,  Thorpe,  that  name  is  familiar.  Where  does 
he  reside?" 


THE   MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  151 

"  In  Maidestone.   I  have  heard  him  mention  your  name." 

"  My  name?"  and  Sir  Richard  grew  a  shade  paler. 

"  Nothing  very  strange  in  that,"  she  said.  "You  are 
well  known  in  Maidestone." 

Sir  Richard,  resuming  his  self-complacency  and  sus- 
pecting Miss  Margate  may  have  heard  a  small  particle  too 
much  concerning  him,  opened  Ms  battery  of  self-defence, 
thus: 

"  Miss  Margate,  were  you  acquainted  with  the  ways  of 
the  world  as  I  am,  you  would  conclude  that  the  ways  of  a 
young  lord  are  not  all  pleasantness  and  peace.  For  the  past 
five  years  I  have  been,  to  a  certain  extent,  slandered  and 
blackmailed ;  that  is,  I  happen  to  be  an  intimate  friend  of 

Lord ,  and  I  will  admit  that  while  out  on  many  a 

little  lark  together,  which  was  really  nothing  more  than 
boys'  play,  we  may  have  done  some  things  which  laid  us 
open  to  censure  and  criticism;  but,  telling  the  truth, 
I  personally  Avas  not  to  blame.  In  order  to  shield  him 
(on  account  of  his  mother),  in  a  spirit  of  boyish  reckless- 
ness I  allowed  myself  to  be  compromised.  Not  wishing  to 
bore  you  with  any  account  of  our  escapades,  I  merely 
want  to  ask  one  thing,  and  that  is,  do  not  come  to  a  con- 
clusion about  me  without  sifting  the  accusation,  and  you 
will  find  that  I  have  been  perfectly  honorable,  although 
very  foolishly  I  have  allowed  my  name  to  be  connected 
with  a  rather  scandalous  proceeding." 

Talk  of  this  kind  to  a  country  girl  of  Lillie's  temperament 
caused  her  to  look  upon  Sir  Richard  as  u  loyal  friend  and  a 
a  sincere  martyr. 

"I  am  exceedingly  sorry  for  you,"  she  said,  biting  her 
lips.  "  You  are  brave,  but  I  can  scarcely  see  the  necessity 
of  your  fidelity  to  such  a  reckless  confrere" 


152  THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAlkfP. 

"  The  public  are  too  fond  of  coupling  his  name  with  some 
intrigue,  and  the  truth  of  the  whole  matter  is,  Miss  Mar- 
gate, that  there  was  really  nothing  in  the  accusation  that 
would  cause  your  cheek  to  blush,  or  your  sweet  lips  to  cry 
shame." 

Lillie  looked  out  of  the  window  at  the  bright  lights 
pensively. 

Sir  Richard  had  moved  a  little  closer  to  ner  on  the  sofa. 

"  Would  that  this  night  could  last  always,"  he  said,  in 
a  sorrowful  manner.  His  big,  sincere  eyes  looking  into 
Lillie's  face. 

"  You  don't  really  mean  that,"  she  said,  puzzled  as  to 
his  meaning. 

"  Miss  Margate,  why  do  you  always  believe  me  insincere. 
Sincerity  has  been  the  motto  of  the  Cartwrights  for  ages." 

"I  don't  know.  You  have  told  me  so  many  wonderful 
things  that  your  stories  seem  like  fairy  tales." 

"  Yes,  and  you  seem  like  a  bright,  fairy  enchantress, 
who  has  crossed  my  path.  Why,  I  know  not." 

Lillie,  becoming  agitated  at  Sir  Richard's  earnestness, 
moved  slightly  away  from  him. 

Looking  into  his  boyish,  pleasant  face,  she  saw  nothing 
but  truth  and  honor.  She  was  sorry  for  him  for  the  mo- 
ment. 

"  You  will  go  home  to-morrow  and  leave  me  here  so 
lonely,"  he  said,  persuasively.  "I  am  almost  sorry  we 
met." 

"Sorry?  Why?"  she  said,  innocently. 

"  Why?    Miss  Margate,  will  I  tell  you  the  truth?" 

The  music  had  recommenced.  They  were  dancing  in 
the  adjoining  parlor.  Lillie  was  still  gazing  out  into  the 
lighted  street. 


THE   MILLIONAIRE   TEAMP.  153 

"  The  truth  is,  Miss  Lillie  Margate,  I  love  you  with  all 
my  soul." 

As  Sir  Richard  spoke  these  words  two  men  passed  the 
window  arm  in  arm.  The  light  gleamed  on  the  face  of 
Charles  Landsdowne.  Lillie  Margate  uttered  a  piercing 
shriek  and  tainted. 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

THE   BUTTERFLY   SOCIETY  OF  LONDON. 
"  Trust  not  him  that  seems  a  saint." 

"  I  never  knew  her  to  faint  that  way  in  all  my  life,"  said 
Mrs.  Margate,  anxiously. 

' '  It  was  something  she  saw  out  of  the  window,  I  be- 
lieve," said  Sir  Richard,  excitedly;  "I  am  sure  I  saw 
nothing;  we  were  chatting  pleasantly  about  London." 

Recovering  from  her  faint  Lillie  retired  to  her  room 
with  Mrs.  Tupper,  her  mamma,  and  several  ladies. 

The  guests  were  departing,  and  Lillie  and  her  mother 
and  Mrs.  and  Miss  Tupper  were  to  remain  till  the  ensuing 
day. 

Mrs.  Tupper  had  enjoyed  the  evening  thoroughly,  talked 
with  every  one,  and  insisted  on  dancing,  to  the  infinite 
delight  of  Mortimer  Simpkins,  who  more  than  once  peered 
at  her  through  his  single-barrelled  e}Te-glass,  saying: 

"  By  Jove,  she's  a  doocedly  clevah  old  lady,  and  ex- 
ceedingly fond  of  fun." 

Lillie  had  gone  down  stairs  to  recover  a  lost  fan.  As 
she  looked  out  of  the  window  where  she  had  been  sitting 
with  Sir  Richard,  her  attention  was  attracted  to  a  drunken 
man  on  the  street  whom  an  officer  was  lugging  along  as 
best  he  could. 

"  Ah,  there  is  the  dark  side  of  life  in  this  groat  city," 
Lillie  exclaimed.  "  Under  t^e  lamps  of  gay  society  all  is 


THE  MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP.  155 

peaceful,  promising  and  happy ;  out  on  the  streets  the 
miserable  wrecks  of  broken  lives  wander  about,  cold, 
hungry  and  forsaken." 

Thus  pondering,  she  heard  steps  in  the  hall.  It  was  Sir 
Richard;  he  was  conversing  with  Lady  Cawthorne,  who 
had  accompanied  him  to  the  door.  Lady  Cawthorne 
ordered  the  butler  to  retire.  Lillie,  fearing  she  should  be 
seen,  stood  in  the  shadow  of  the  large  window  curtain. 
She  noticed  by  the  tone  of  Lady  Cawthorne's  voice,  that 
she  was  angry  at  Sir  Richard.  Lillie's  ear  caught  every 
remarkable  word. 

"  Dick,  you're  a  naughty,  miserable  flirt,  that's  just 
what  you  are,  and  I've  a  good  mind  not  to  kiss  you  good- 
night; I've  been  so  jealous  all  the  evening  that  I  am  half 
sick." 

"  Now,  sweetheart,  that  is  a  magnificent  condition  of 
things.  You  jealous  of  that  little  country  thing!  Why, 
I  merely  wanted  to  have  a  little  flirtation;  that's  all,  so 
help  me,  darling.  Now  forgive  me,  I  will  never  do  so 
again."  Lillie  was  dumbfounded  and  crouched  down  on 
the  floor. 

"  Yes,  but  she  is  so  lovely." 

"  Yes,  rather,  but  no  sense;  green  as  a  meadow.  I  am 
all  over  my  semi-infatuation  now.  Sweet  countess,  kiss 
me ;  that  Louis  Roderer  (wine)  went  to  my  head  and  I 
made  a  fool  of  myself.  Yes,  just  one  little  kiss ;  I  love 
you  better  than  a  thousand  simple  maids  of  Kent." 

* '  No,  I  shall  not.  You're  as  mean  as  mean  can  be.  1 
hated  you  to-night.  You  ought  to  have  seen  me  look  at 
her ;  my  eyes  must  have  flashed.  Kiss  rne ;  there,  now  go." 

"  Sweet  countess,  shall  we  go  to  the  opera  to-morrow 
evening?" 

"  No,    the     next     evening.     I     feel      better    now ; 

The  Millionaire  Tramp  1\\ 


15G  THE   MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP. 

I'm  all  over  my  tantrum ;  you  love  me,  don't  you  ?  Come 
and  see  me  the  minute  these  people  go.  Now,  remem- 
ber," and  she  put  her  arm  lovingly  around  his  neck.  "  No 
more  flirtations  with  the  belle  of  Kent.  The  little 
wretch,"  added  Lady  Cawthorne.  "  She  was  in  high  glory 
to-night,  wasn't  she?  She  believed  herself  admired  by 
the  entire  assemblage." 

' '  Curiosity  and  admiration  are  very  far  apart,"  suggested 
Richard. 

"Good-night,  love,"  and  the  door  slammed. 

Lillie's  first  impulse  was  to  wish  she  could  sink  through 
the  floor  where  she  lay,  and  leave  London  by  a  direct  route 
via  the  center  of  the  earth.  Her  next  was  to  inform  her 
mother,  but  this  she  knew  would  cause  a  scene,  and  the — 
Oh,  my!  should  Mrs.  Tupper  hear  of  it,  great  goodness! 
She  would  pack  up  and  leave  the  house  at  midnight  or  any 
other  time.  I  must  keep  this  also  a  secret." 

"  Well,  that  is  London  society,"  she  continued.  "  I 
have  had  enough.  To  think  I  have  even  listened  to 
tales  of  love  from  that  brute.  No  wonder  the  apparition 
of  Charles  Landsdowne's  honest  face  appeared  through  the 
window  and  frightened  me  into  a  faint.  Charles  Lands- 
downe.  God  bless  him ;  now  I  know  his  worth.  Never 
again  shall  I  look  at  Sir  Richard  Cartwright."  Over- 
whelmed with  shame  and  disgust  by  what  she  had  heard 
and  witnessed,  Lillie  sought  her  room  as  soon  as  Lady 
Cawthorne  retired.  She  longed  for  sleep  to  hide  the  un- 
pleasant vision  of  Sir  Richard  and  Lady  Cawthorne  from 
her  thoughts. 

"  Fanny,"  she  said  to  Miss  Tupper;  she  was  rubbing  her 
eyes  and  was  half  awake.  "  What  do  you  think  of  all 
this?" 

"  Oh,  it'»  so  tiresome,"  yawned  Fanny,  who  had  not  half 


THE   MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  157 

enjoyed  herself.     ( Yawn.)     What  do  you  think  about  it 
Lillie?  " 

"  I  ?  Why,  I  have  seen  enough ;  plenty  I  The  hollow 
shams  of  city  society  cannot  be  compared  to  the  honest, 
respectable  and  true  joyousness  of  a  good,  old-fashioned 
country  party. 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 

HOME. 

"  And  like  a  bird  that  from  the  flowers, 
Wing-weary  seeks  her  wanted  nest, 
My  spirit,  e'en  in  manhood's  hours, 
Turns  back  in  childhood's  home  to  rest" 

'*  Charles  Landsdowne  is  at  home,"  were  the  words  that 
greeted  them  on  their  arrival  at  Maidestone. 

And  when  the  Margate  family  carriage,  which  met  them 
in  the  town,  pulled  up  at  the  front  door  of  their  home, 
Wallie  assisted  them  out.  Lillie  waited  to  ask  him  the 
news. 

"Your  laddie  has  gang  to  his  name,"  whispered  Wallie, 
pointing  towards  Landsdowne  Hall. 

He  had  raised  his  cap,  and  as  he  turned  toward  Lillie  he 
exhibited  a  portentous  look  upon  his  wrinkled  face. 

"  Is  he  at  home  ?  " 

"  The  officers  called  th'  morning;  I  fully  spected  to  see 
them  pass  here,  bairn,  wie  him,  puir  lad."  He  shook  his 
head  ominously. 

"  There  they  be,  now.  Nae,  there's  bit  one,  tither  has 
stayed  wie  young  meister."  Soon  a  vehicle  passed  the 
gate  with  but  one  officer  in  it  and  no  Landsdowne.  Then 
Thorpe's  sulky  came  in  sight. 

"  Wallie !  Wallie !  "  said  Lillie,  excitedly.  « '  Put  the 
pony  in  the  gig  at  once ;  I  want  to  see  Mr.  Thorpe." 

Wallie  obeyed  and  Lillie's  fleet-footed  pony  overtook 
Thorpe's  lazy  cob  in  a  few  minutes. 


THE   MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  159 

"Home?  "  said  Lillie,  as  she  drove  her  pony  neck  and 
neck  with  Thorpe's  bob-tail.  Thorpe  was  startled  at  the 
unexpected  visit. 

"  Yes,  yes,  my  dear  girl,  home ;  the  boy  is  home ;  I  have 
effected  a  temporary  compromise.  He  is  to  remain  at 
home  in  charge  of  an  officer  until  I  can  make  an  effort  to 
procure  bail.  I  am  afraid  it  is  impossible,  however,  to 
change  the  order  of  the  indictment  that  he  be  held  with- 
out bail.  But  I  will  never  despair  till  I  try.  At  any  rate 
he  will  not  remain  a  prisoner  long." 

"  Prisoner!  "  said  Lillie,  with  a  shudder.  "  That's  ter- 
rible!" 

"  Here  is  some  one  coming,"  said  Thorpe. 

"  Yes,  I  must  say  good-bye,"  replied  Lillie,  urging  the 
pony  along  and  turning  in  to  the  Fielding's,  to  have  a  chat 
with  Nellie  Fielding  about  the  coming  trial. 

In  the  evening  she  saw  a  carriage  pass.  It  contained 
an  officer  and  Charles  Landsdowne.  News  had  come  that 
no  bail  could  be  accepted. 

She  walked  down  to  the  gate  as  the  carriage  passed. 

Landsdowne  raised  his  hat  with  his  manacled  hands ; 
she  noticed  a  smile  on  his  face  which  seemed  radiant  with 
hope.  She  raised  her  handkerchief,  the  carriage  rolled 
along,  and  as  she  turned  to  retrace  her  steps,  she  wept 
bitterly. 

Old  Wallie  was  pruning  some  apple  trees  in  the  orchard. 
He  had  witnessed  the  scene.  "  He'el  ne'er  coom  back, 
my  puir  lassie,  he'el  ne'er  coom  back,"  he  exclaimed,  out  of 
her  hearing. 

Charles  Landsdowne's  reception  by  his  mother  was 
affecting  to  a  painful  degree.  Since  the  Squire  had  almost 
forsaken  Landsdowne  Hall,  she  had  become  full  of  vague 
doubts  and  fears  for  him.  Grief  during  the  past  year  had 


160  THE   MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP. 

added  much  to  the  weight  of  her  declining  years.  There- 
fore, when  she  saw  him  first,  instead  of  experiencing  the 
joy  a  mother  feels  for  the  return  of  her  boy,  she  hid  her 
hands  and  wept  as  though  her  heart  would  break. 

After  a  few  assuring  remarks  and  comforting  words  from 
him  she  soon  resumed  her  former  cheerfulness  and  blessed 
him  for  his  bravery  in  coming  back.  "  Now  I  know  you 
are  innocent,  my  blessed  boy,"  spoke  the  mother,  as  she 
again  folded  him  to  her  heart. 

The  day  preceding  the  trial,  Landsdowne,  for  the  first 
time  since  his  return  to  England,  experienced  a  sense  of 
nervousness  and  evil  forebodings.  He  looked  at  the  grim 
walls  about  him,  to  obtain  a  grain  of  comfort  from  some 
object  in  view,  but  there  was  none.  The  warden  of  the 
prison,  a  great  friend  of  Thorpe's,  came  in  with  a  small 
parcel,  for  which  Landsdowne  thanked  him.  The  com- 
fortable looking  warden  whispered  a  reply  with  a  know- 
ing smile  on  his  full  face. 

"  This  is  against  the  rules,  young  friend,  but  I  see  no 
harm  in  it." 

The  package  had  been  torn  open  at  one  end.  In  the  center 
was  a  beautiful  red  rose,  and  attached  to  it  a  tiny  card,  with 
the  words,  in  Lillie  Margate's  handwriting:  "  Yours  for- 
ever, Lillie."  Landsdowne  kissed  the  rose  several  times, 
and  soon  cast  away  all  gloominess.  "  Yours  forever," 
sounded  in  his  ears  like  a  revelation  from  another  world. 
That  night  a  sound,  peaceful  si  umber  brought  repose  to  his 
troubled  mind,  and  when  he  awoke,  he  felt  as  brave  and 
reliant  as  if  he  were  going  on  a  pleasure  excursion  instead 
of  about  to  be  arraigned  to  answer  such  a  dreadful  charge. 


CHAPTER  XXIV. 

THE  TRIAL. 

"  Of  God  she  stmg  and  of  the 
Mild  attendant  mercy," 

'Twas  a  dull  day  in  Maidestone;  farmers  from  the  neigh- 
borhood of  Landsdowne  Hall  arrived  with  their  wagons  to 
attend  the  trial ;  some  of  them  had  come  prepared  to  stay 
a  week. 

The  criminal  court  hall  in  the  old  court  house  was 
crowded,  many  ladies  having  secured  front  seats  by  com- 
ing early.  Thorpe,  dressed  in  his  best  court  gown ,  his  thin 
face  shaven  and  a  scrupulously  clean  appearance  all  about 
him,  was  busily  engaged  examining  the  indictment.  Jer- 
ricks  sat  quietly  eyeing  the  prisoner  in  the  box  with  his 
steely  gray  eyes,  evidently  reading  a  history  from  his 
physiognomy.  The  judge,  with  powdered  wig  and  black 
gown,  sat  chatting  to  Sir  Cole  Jerrold,  of  London,  as  if  it 
were  no  new  thing  to  preside  over  a  murder  trial. 

The  panel  of  jurymen  had  not  yet  taken  their  seats.  The 
clerk  was  about  to  call  their  names.  The  Queen's  coun- 
sel, Mr.  Sidney  Blake,  was  hunting  up  decisions  from 
various  digests.  Charles  Landsdowne,  the  prisoner,  was 
seated  in  the  odd-fashioned  seat  known  as  the  prisoner's 
box.  Surrounding  him  were  his  father  and  several 
acquaintances. 

The  jury  had  taken  their  seats.  Mr.  Blake  commenced 
by  stating  the  position  taken  by  the  prosecution.  He  also 


162  THE   MILLIONAIKE   TltAMP. 

claimed  that  he  should  prove  by  circumstantial  as  well  as 
by  direct  evidence  that  the  prisoner  was  guilty. 

Jerricks  never  removed  his  eyes  for  one  moment  from 
Blake  during  his  opening  speech,  which  lasted  about  half 
an  hour. 

Thorpe,  assisted  by  two  able  lights  of  the  London  bar, 
sat  noting  down  every  point  made  by  Blake.  Thorpe 
responded  by  a  few  prefacing  remarks  prior  to  the  intro- 
duction of  the  evidence. 

The  first  witness  called  for  the  crown  was  old  Wallie, 
who  walked  up  to  the  witness  stand  with  an  air  of 
sadness. 

He  testified  to  finding  the  body  of  Warren  Margate ; 
the  handkerchief  of  the  prisoner  stained  with  blood  near 
the  corpse;  the  finding  of  young  Margate's  gun  with 
both  barrels  loaded ;  also  the  gun  of  the  prisoner  with 
one  barrel  evidently  discharged. 

He  also  testified  to  the  fact  of  his  having  seen  young 
Margate  alive  the  night  previous  to  the  affair;  the  carry- 
ing of  the  body  home,  and  other  particulars  with  which 
the  reader  is  familiar.  Mr.  Blake  drew  out  additional 
testimony  from  the  old  gardener,  much  against  his  will,  in 
relation  to  the  family  feud  having  existed  "  lang  since  al 
remimberance." 

John  Tague  swore  that  Warren  Margate  had  asked  him 
in  relation  to  the  shooting  in  the  thicket,  and  that  young 
Margate  had  evidently  gone  there  for  that  purpose  and 
no  other.  On  the  cross-examination  old  Tague  said  he 
had  heard  Lindley  threaten  Warren  Margate's  life  before 
the  shooting.  After  the  physicians  had  testified  as  to  the 
post  mortem  examination  and  the  cause  of  death,  and 
several  minor  witnesses  as  to  tho  flight  and  absence  of 
Landsdowne,  the  most  important  witness  for  the  crown 


THE   MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  163 

was  called,  William  Lindley,  who  stepped  to  the  stand  in 
his  usual  sullen  manner,  amid  whispering  and  murmuring 
i'n  the  assemblage. 

Lindley,  who  was  now  undergoing  a  sentence  in  prison, 
was  allowed  to  don  citizen's  clothes  while  giving  evidence. 
Charles  Landsdowne  turned  as  he  entered  and  looked  him 
full  in  the  face  with  a  searching  glance.  Jerricks  also 
moved  his  seat  and  listened  attentively  to  the  evidence. 
Liudley's  face  was  pale  but  determined,  knowing  his 
testimony  was  his  only  escape. 

He  started  out  by  relating,  in  a  confused  way,  the 
details  of  the  shooting,  following  as  closely  his  former 
statement  as  his  memory  would  permit.  He  reiterated 
emphatically  that  he  saw  Landsdowne  deliberately  shoot 
young  Margate  in  "  cold  blood."  At  the  conclusion  of 
his  testimony  all  eyes  turned  on  the  prisoner,  some 
expressing  a  look  of  sympathy,  but  many  revenge,  horror 
and  hate. 

Mr.  Blake  here  rested  the  case,  and  the  court  adjourned 
for  the  day. 

The  next  morning  Mr.  Thorpe  and  Sir  Cole  Jerrold, 
one  of  the  ablest  cross-examiners  in  London,  opened  their 
fortifications  on  Mr.  Lindley,  and  to-day  the  full  record 
of  this  case,  cited  In  the  Old  Bailey  Calendar,  and  which 
it  would  be  impracticable  and  tedious  to  give  here,  exhib- 
its one  of  the  shrewdest  and  most  effective  cross-examin- 
ations ever  made  of  a  leading  witness  in  a  trial  of  this 
kind. 

Sir  Cole  Jerrold  said  in  a  quiet,  unassuming  way :  "Mr. 
Lindley,  do  you  say  that  you  have  told  the  court  and  jury 
all  that  transpired  on  that  eventful  day?" 

"Yes,  sir." 


164  THE   MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP. 

"You  say  positively  that  Charles  Landsdowne  com- 
mitted the  act  and  you  saw  him?" 

«  Yes." 

"  What  were  you  doing  at  the  time?  Why  were  you 
there?  State  briefly,  please." 

"  I  were  mendin'  the  fence,  sir,  for  Squire  Landsdowne." 

"  What  were  you  doing  with  the  musket  in  your 
hands?" 

Mr.  Blake  objected  to  the  question.  No  musket  was 
brought  out  in  the  direct  examination. 

The  Chief  Justice:  "  The  witness  may  answer  whether 
he  had  a  musket  or  not." 

Lindley  turned  paler  and  hesitated  fully  a  minute.  Sir 
Cole  continued:  "The  musket  did  not  hurt  you;  tell  u» 
about  it." 

"  I  don't  remember,  sir,"  he  muttered. 

"  Defective  memory,  eh?  You  remembered  the  shoot- 
ing quite  well.  Now,  Mr.  Lindley,  tell  us  the  truth. 
You  had  the  old  musket  that  used  to  hang  up  in  the  store- 
room of  Landsdowne  Hall,  did  you  not?" 

"  I  might  'ave  'ad  it,"  scratching  his  head  as  11  Drying 
to  think. 

"  Yes,  you  undoubtedly  had,"  said  Sir  Cole,  sternly. 

Mr.  Blake  objected  to  this  system  of  cross-examination, 
but  Sir  Cole  replied:  "The  system  may  be  bad>  out  we 
are  getting  some  interesting  information  all  the  same/' 

"What  do  you  propose  to  prove  by  the  musket?" 
retorted  Mr.  Blake,  sarcastically. 

Thorpe's  ferret  eyes  twinkled  merrily.  Even  Jerricks 
winked  and  allowed  a  smile  to  play  on  his  hard  lips. 

"  Well,  I  'ad  it,  sir,"  finally  conceded  Mr.  Lindley. 

"  Yes,  you  had  that  old   musket   on  the  day  of  the 


,  THE   MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP.  165 

shooting,  did  you  not,  and  at  the  time  you  cay  you  saw 
the  prisoner  fire  at  the  late  Mr.  Margate?  " 

Hesitating  again.     "Yes,  sir." 

"  What  were  you  doing  with  it?  " 

*  *  Oh,  I  h'only  took  it  h'out  in  case  I  should  scare  up  a 
bit  o'  game,   sir,"   answered  Liudley,  pleased   with  the 
inventive  answer. 

"  Well,  you  found  the  game,  did  you  not?  " 

"  No,  sir,"  replied  Lindley,  again  looking  disturbed. 

"  You  said  you  stood  by  the  stone  fence  when  you  saw 
the  prisoner  shoot  the  deceased?  " 

"Yes,  sir." 

"  Now,"  said  Sir  Cole  Jerrold,  coming  forward  and  look- 
ing Lindley  in  the  eye,  "  did  you  not  stand  by  the  stone 
fence  and  shoot  Warren  Margate  yourself  ?  " 

Sensation  in  the  court  room. 

Lindley  trembled  and  turned  deathly  pale.  "  No — no- 
sir." 

"  Now,  you  did  not  shoot  any  game,  you  said?  How  did 
the  musket  become  unloaded?  " 

"  I  don't  know,  sir." 

"  Where  did  you  find  this  musket?  " 

"  In  the  store-room  at  the  'all,  sir." 

•  <  When  did  you  load  it?  " 
"  I  didn't  load  it,  sir. 

"  Oh,  you  were  going  to  shoot  grouse  with  air,  were 
you?" 

"No,  sir.     It  were  loaded  afore  I  got  it." 

Sir  Cole  Jerrold  thought  a  moment. 

"  Were  you  in  the  habit  of  cleaning  Mr.  Charles  Lands- 
downe's  gun  ?  " 

44  Yes,  sir." 


166  THE   MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP. 

"  Did  you  clean  it  the  .night  before  he  went  shooting 
that  time?  " 

"I  cleaned  the  h' outside,  sir." 

"  On  the  ramrod  there  was  a  spiral  screw,  was  there 
not?  " 

Lindley  looked  aghast.     "I  don't  know,  sir." 

"  Yes,  you  do.  Now,  tell  the  truth!  That  is  what 
you  are  here  for,"  roared  Sir  Cole. 

"  Well,  I  believes  there  were  such  a  screw." 

"  Did  you  have  any  powder  or  shot?  " 

"Yes,  I  loaded  "-- 

Lindley  had  said  too  much. 

"Oh,  you  loaded  the  musket  with  powder  and  shot?  " 

"  Yes — no,  sir." 

"  Which  do  you  mean?  " 

"  You  bother  me,  sir." 

"Yes,  I  am  sorry  for  that.  But  you  loaded  the  mus- 
ket, did  you  not?  " 

Mr.  Blake  denied  the  right  of  Sir  Jerrold  to  put  these 
questions  in  this  matter  without  having  foundation  laid 
for  them. 

"  The  foundation  will  be  erected  after  the  walls,  in  this 
case,"  he  replied. 

"  But  I  seriously  object,"  continued  Blake. 

"  My  intention  is  to  show  by  the  witness  that  the  pris- 
oner did  not  commit  the  crime  alleged ;  that  it  was  com- 
mitted by  the  witness."  (Sensation.) 

"  Then  I  certainly  will  object  on  the  ground  that  the 
witness  cannot  be  made  to  criminate  himself,  if  upon  no 
other,"  said  Blake. 

This  was  just  what  Sir  Cole  Jerrold  wanted.  To  put 
the  prosecution's  leading  witness  in  a  shape  that  he  could 
not  answer  on  the  ground  that  he  would  criminate  himself. 


THE   MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP.  167 

Leaning  over  to  Thorpe,  Sir  Cole  whispered :  "  How 
are  we  getting  on?  " 

Thorpe  answered,  "  Grand!  Grand!" 

"  Then  I  will  again  ask  you  if  Squire  Landsdowne 
allowed  the  farm  hands  to  have  powder  and  shot  on  the 
premises?  " 

1  'No,  sir." 

"  Where  did  you  get  the  powder?  " 

"  It  was  blasting  pow — " 

"  Hold,"  said  Blake,  "  do  not  answer." 

Lindley  looked  nonplussed. 

"  "Where  did  you  get  the  shot?  " 

"  For  the  same  reason,  don't  answer,"  yelled  Blake. 

"  You  are  giving  your  side  of  the  case  a  very  bad  ap- 
pearance, Mr.  Blake,  by  refusing  me  this  answer." 

"  It  does  not  amount  to  anything  and  has  no  relevancy," 
said  Blake. 

"  Then  please  let  him  answer  it  to  please  me,"  said  Sir 
Cole,  in  a  winning  way." 

"  I  don't  care  if  he  does." 

"  I  bought  it." 

1  'Where?" 

"  I  don't  know,  years  ago  in  London." 

"  Now,  are  you  satisfied,  Sir  Jerrold?  " 

"  Yes,  I  am  satisfied,  that  is  untrue." 

"  Now,  that  is  not  right,"  said  Blake  angrily,  to  Sir  Jer« 
rold. 

"  No,  I  am  sure  it  is  not." 

"  What  was  the  number  of  the  shot  you  bought  in  Lon- 
don? " 

"  No.  5." 

"  Are  you  sure?  " 

"  Yes,  sir,  I  think  so." 


168  THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP. 

Blake  jumped  to  his  feet  again  and  demanded  that  his 
witness  be  not  compelled  to  answer,  on  the  ground  that  he 
might  criminate  himself.  "  I  don't  know  how  this  may 
prejudice  the  jury  and  it  is  illegal  and  not  according  to  the 
rules  of  evidence,  and  Sir  Jerrold  knows  it." 

"  Let  the  cross-examination  proceed,'  said  the  Chief 
Justice,  evidently  very  much  interested  in  the  witness' 
testimony.  "  In  matters  of  this  kind  the  courts  will  give 
every  leniency  to  the  prisoner.  But  you  must  not  forget 
that  Mr.  Lindley,  the  witness,  is  not  on  trial." 

"  We'll  have  him  on  trial  before  long,"  said  Sir  Cole 
Jerrold,  boldly. 

"  What  did  you  do  with  the  musket  after  you  left  the 
thicket?  " 

Lindley  again  looked  bewildered  at  Blake  to  see  if  he 
should  answer. 

"  Oh,  tell  him,"  said  Blake,  annoyed  at  the  question. 

"  I  took  it  home." 

"  How  was  it  that  it  was  found  in  the  thicket?  "  Object- 
ed to  by  Blake  as  there  was  no  evidence  before  the  court. 

"Only  to  save  time,  Chief  Justice;  we  have  testimony 
to  that  effect." 

Lindley  heard  the  last  remark  and  pondered  on  it.  "I 
may  have  left  it  in  the  thicket.  I  was  so  'fraid,  sir,  arter 
seein'  the  shootin',  I  didn't  know  what  to  do." 

"  Did  you  not  have  a  quarrel  with  young  Margate  prior 
to  the  shooting?  " 

"  Yes,  sir." 

"And  you  threatened  to  kill  him,  did  you  not?  " 

"I  don't  recollect." 

"  That  will  do  for  the  present." 

THIRD  DAY'S  TRIAL. 

Witnesses  for  the  defence  were  called.     John  Wilson,* 


THE   MILLIONAIRE   TKAMP.  169 

farm  hand  at  Laiidsdowne  Hall,  swore  he  saw  the  old 
musket  alluded  to  three  days  prior  to  the  shooting;  that 
it  was  in  the  store-room,  broken  and  unloaded;  that  he 
saw  Lindley  repairing  it  the  next  day  after  his  fight  with 
Margate.  Details  of  Lindley's  blackened  eyes  and  appear- 
ance were  given.  That  Lindley  left  the  house  early  on  the 
morning  of  the  shooting  with  the  old  musket,  or  something 
like  it.  Witness  was  at  a  distance. 

"  Did  he  return  with  it?  " 

"  No  sir;  he  did  not  have  it  when  he  returned." 

That  he  heard  Lindley  threaten  to  kill  young  Margate 
and  call  him  terrible  names. 

The  next  witness  examined  was  Peter. 

"  Don't  know  any  other  name.  Folks  always  call  me 
*  Foolish  Pete.'  Don't  know  the  reason  why." 

Blake  objected;  he  did  not  believe  witness  understood 
the  nature  or  solemnity  of  an  oath. 

"  We  shall  see,"  said  Sir  Cole. 

"  Mr.  Peter,  where  were  you  born?  " 

"Lunnun." 

"  Before  we  hear  his  testimony  I  will  insist  upon  his 
being  examined  with  that  object  in  view." 

"  Do  you  understand  the  nature  of  an  oath,  sir?  "  said 
Blake.  Peter  grinned. 

"  Quite  the  proper  course  to  take,"  said  the  Chief  Jus- 
tice. "Allow  me  to  ask  him.  Where  were  you  born?  " 

"  In  the  poor  house." 

"  You  consider  yourself  capable  to  testify,  do  you?  " 
Peter  grinned  again  and  nodded  affirmatively. 

"  What  is  an  oath?  " 

"  To  swear  to  tell  the  truth,  the  whole  truth,  and  noth- 
ing but  the  truth." 


170  THE   MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP. 

"  Ha,  ha!"  said  Sir  Cole,  "a  better  definition  than  you 
could  give,  Blake." 

"  Do  you  know  what  your  punishment  would  be  if  you 
swore  to  a  falsehood?  "  asked  the  Chief  Justice. 

"  Yaas,  sir;  go  to  hell." 

"  Well,  that  is  true;  but  what  punishment  on  earth?  " 

"  Aboot  four  or  five  years  in  jail."  (Titter  in  the  audi- 
ence). 

"  How  long  have  you  lived  at  Landsdowne  Hall?  " 

"Ten  years." 

"  Whom  do  you  work  for?  " 

' '  Squire  Landsdowne,"  pointing  to  the  Squire. 

The  Chief  Justice  suggested  that  Squire  Landsdowne 
be  sworn. 

"  Squire,  do  you  believe  this  boy  understands  the  nature 
of  an  oath?" 

"  I  am  sure  he  does,"  the  Squire  responded. 

"  Can  he  be  trusted  to  perform  the  usual  chores  and 
duties  about  the  farm?  " 

"  Yes ;  and  furthermore  I  have  always  found  him  truth- 
ful, honest  and  faithful. 

"  Let  him  be  sworn,"  said  the  Chief  Justice,  with  a  toss 
of  his  head  at  Blake's  interference. 

"Mr.  Thorpe,  examine  the  witness,"  said  Sir  Cole 
Jerrold. 

"  Mr.  Peter,"  said  Thorpe,  "  where  were  you  the  even- 
ing before  Mr.  Margate  was  killed?  " 

"  At  Landsdowne  Hall." 

"  Did  you  see  Lindley  that  evening?  " 

"  Yaas,"  nodding  his  head. 

"  Where  was  he?  " 

"In  back  kitchen." 

"  What  was  he  doing?  " 


THE   MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP.  171 

"  Fixin'  auld  musket." 

"  Did  you  see  him  load  the  musket?  " 

"  Yaas." 

"  Where  did  he  get  the  powder?  " 

"  It  was  the  blastin'  powder  from  the  barn.  I  knowed 
where  he  got  it." 

"  Where  did  he  get  the  shot?  "  Peter  grinned  at  the 
query  and  looked  at  the  jury.  Every  eye  in  the  court 
room  was  riveted  upon  him  and  a  deep  silence  prevailed. 

"He  pulled  it  out  of  Maester  Charles' gun  with  the 
ramrod." 

"  Who  told  you  to  say  this?  "  exclaimed  Blake.  Peter 
grinned  at  him,  not  deigning  a  reply. 

"  He  pulled  out  the  shot,  piece  by  piece,  this  way,"  and 
Peter  described,  in  his  idiotic  way — which  was  dramatic 
owing  to  the  intense  interest  prevailing,  even  Blake 
being  silenced  for  the  nonce — how  Lindley  twisted  the 
ramrod  to  break  the  cartridge. 

"  When  he  loaded  the  musket  did  he  put  the  shot  or 
powder  in  first?  "  interrupted  Blake. 

Peter  looked  at  him  sarcastically.  "Ain't  you  smart?" 
was  all  the  answer  he  gave  the  Queen's  counsel.  Laugh- 
ter and  suppressed  applause. 

"  He  loaded  the  old  musket.  I  thought  he  was  foolin' 
at  first.  Then  I  went  out  to  feed  the  dogs.  When  1 
corned  back  he  didn't  see  I." 

" What  did  he  say?" 

"  He  were  mutterin'  to  hisself." 

"  Do  you  remember  what  words  you  heard?  " 

"Yaas.  He  said  he'd— he'd  "—looking  at  the  Chief 
Justice  he  asked,  "  Can  I  say  the  bad  words  he  said?  " 

"Yes,  sir;  tell  it  all." 

The  Millionaire   Tramp  12. 


172  THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP. 

"  He  said,  '  This  will  blow  the  young  devil's  damned 
brains  out.'  " 

"  Whom  did  he  mean?  " 

"  I  didn't  know  then  ;  now  I  do.  Young  Mr.  Margate. 
There  be  witches  over  in  them  thickets,"  he  added,  as  his 
daft  brain  took  another  turn. 

"  Nevermind  the  witches  now,  Peter,"  suggested  Thorpe. 

"  How  do  you  know  that  Liudley  wanted  to  kill  young 
Margate?  " 

"  'Cause  he  said  day  afore  he'd  kill  young  Maester  Mar- 
gate if  he'd  hang  hundred  feet  high,  he  did." 

Blake  looked  crestfallen  at  this  statement. 

Jerricks'  gray  eyes  fairly  snapped.  Sir  Cole  Jerrold 
stretched  his  long  legs  out  in  a  self-satisfied  manner, 
The  Chief  Justice  leaned  back  in  the  large  judicial  chair 
and  watched  the  effect  this  testimony  was  having  on  the 


The  clock  struck  five;  the  court  adjourned  for  the 
fourth  day  of  the  trial. 

Peter  was  detained  by  order  of  the  court  during  the 
night,  no  one  being  allowed  to  converse  with  him  in 
regard  to  the  case. 


CHAPTER   XXV. 

GUILTY  OK  NOT  GUILTY. 

"A  heart  unspotted  is  not  easily  daunted," 

At  the  opening  of  the  fourth  day  Peter  was  rigidly 
cross-examined  by  Mr.  Blake  without  eliciting  any  change 
m  his  statements  of  the  day  before.  When  the  Queen's 
counsel  would  badger  him  he  would  grin  complacently, 
but  he  never  was  puzzled  or  embarrassed.  Peter  had 
grown  to  dislike  Mr.  Blake,  and  ridiculed  his  questions  as 
unworthy  of  answer.  When  Blake  asked  him  if  he  had 
not  been  told  to  give  this  testimony  at  Landsdowne  Hall, 
Peter  replied,  "  You  think  everybody  be  a  rascal  like 
thou,  don't  ye?  "  This  reply  fairly  convulsed  the  curious 
on  the  back  seat,  and  in  fact  brought  a  smile  to  the 
stately  face  of  the  Lord  Chief  Justice.  Blake  looked  dis- 
gusted for  a  moment  at  the  reply,  but  recovering  his 
usual  suavity  immediately,  tossed  his  head  at  Peter,  and 
laughing  out  with  the  rest  said,  "  There,  now  you  may  go." 

The  next  witness  called  by  the  defence  produced  a  sensa- 
tion throughout  the  court  chamber, — Miss  Lillie  Margate. 
Charles  Landsdowne  exhibited  for  the  first  time  during 
the  trial  considerable  agitation.  As  Miss  Margate  removed 
her  veil,  displaying  her  face  to  the  eager  eyes  of  the  nu- 
merous barristers  within  the  paling,  whisperings  became 
too  audible,  and  the  bailiff  rapped  for  silence. 

"  I   have  met  Mr.  Landsdowne  and  know  him  quite 


174  THE  MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP. 

well.  We  attend  the  same  church."  Squire  Laudsdowne, 
who  sat  near  by,  looked  up  at  her  with  a  half  frightened 
stare,  as  if  expecting  some  evidence  detrimental  to  his 
son. 

She  proved  that  no  ill  feeling  had  ever  existed 
between  this  last  generation  of  Landsdownes  and  Mar- 
gates,  to  her  knowledge,  and  although  never  allowed  to 
associate  with  young  Mr.  Landsdowne  because  of  some 
ancient  family  feud,  never  fully  comprehended  the  reason. 

Answer  to  Sir  Cole  Jerrold : 

"  I  am  sure  Mr.  Charles  Landsdowne  never  entertained 
the  slightest  animosity  toward  my  poor  brother.  I  con- 
versed with  the  prisoner — I  mean  Mr.  Landsdowne — the 
day  before  the  tragedy.  He  was  warm  in  his  expressions 
of  friendliness  and  said  he  longed  for  the  time  when  the 
feud  would  end." 

Blake  was  about  to  stop  her  testimony  as  irrelevant. 
One  look  from  the  eagle  eyes  of  Sir  Cole  changed  his 
mind.  Blake  refused  to  examine  the  witness. 

Charles  Landsdowne  never  thoroughly  knew  what  love 
was  until  he  had  listened  to  the  sworn  testimony  of  the 
last  witness. 

Eloquent  speeches  were  made  on  both  sides,  and  Thorpe, 
the  little  nervous  man,  outdid  himself.  He  arose  and  sur- 
veyed the  jury. 

"My  client's  life,"  he  said,  "is  in  your  hands,  and  I 
believe  it  is  safe ;  but  a  serious  charge  rests  on  you  to  day, 
gentlemen.  It  is  not  that  you  will  do  your  duty  as  men 
living  under  the  laws  of  a  Christian  country  that  causes 
me  alarm,  it  is  that  the  learned  and  ingenious  counsel  for 
the  crown  may  succeed  in  raising  before  you  such  a  weight 
of  circumstantial  evidence  against  the  prisoner  that  will 
place  you  in  a  position  where  what  you  would  suppose 


THE   MILLIONAIRE   TKAMP.  175 

was  your  duty  might  cause  you  to  decide  unfavorably  to 
him.  Would  that  the  Almighty  would  open  your  eyes  to 
see  the  truth.  On  that  single  word  I  could  rest  my  case. 
But  here  we  have  an  unfortunate  chain  of  apparent  evi- 
dence to  contend  with.  Could  I  but  picture  to  your 
minds  the  fact  that  there  sits  in  that  prisoner's  box  a 
young  man  whose  generous  impulses,  noble  characteristics 
and  manliness  would  make  it  impossible  for  such  as  he  to 
commit  the  atrocious,  cowardly  act  that  transpired  in  the 
thicket!  Is  it  possible  for  a  young  man  whose  previous 
history  is  respectable,  honorable  and  kind,  to  change  in  a 
flash  into  a  red-handed  and  cowardly  assassin?  I  say, 
gentlemen,  it  is  not  nature!  It  is  not  so!  It  is  impossible! 

"  That  this  murder  was  committed  we  do  not  attempt  to 
deny,  but  that  any  malice  existed,  or  ground  for  trouble, 
between  deceased  and  Charles  Landsdowne,  we  emphatic- 
ally do  deny.  (Murmuring  and  whispering  in  court.) 

"  That  Charles  Landsdowne  committed  the  act  you  do 
not  in  your  hearts  believe.  You  know  he  did  not. 
And  it  has  been  proved  here  on  this  trial  that  as 
strong  a  chain  of  circumstantial  evidence  as  was  ever 
wound  around  a  prisoner  in  the  annals  of  this  country,  has 
been  about  the  witness,  Wm.  Lindley,  whom  it  is  out  of 
our  jurisdiction  to  try  (he  having  turned  Queen's  evidence). 

"  The  flight  of  Charles  Landsdowne  can  be  accounted 
for.  He  believed  he  had  killed  young  Margate  by  an 
accidental  shot,  knowing  that  no  one  would  ever  believe 
there  was  no  malice  existing  between  them ;  not  knowing 
that  behind  that  stone  fence  in  the  thicket,  musket  in 
hand,  with  heart  full  of  hatred,  malice  and  revenge,  stood 
the  cowardly  murderer  of  poor  Warren  Margate.  The 
sportsman's  gun  of  Charles  Landsdowne,  and  the  assas- 
sinating musket  of  William  Lindley  were  fired  simulta- 


176  THE   MILLIONAIRE   TKA1MP. 

neously.  The  first  by  the  accidental  bending  of  a  bough, 
while  the  prisoner  was  aiming  at  some  game,  the  latter 
by  the  murderous  fore-finger  of  the  man  Liudley,  whom 
we  have  shown  to  have  led  a  villain's  life  from  his  cradle  up. 

"Now,  gentlemen,"  growing  vigorously  eloquent, 
"  which  evidence  will  you  accept,  the  whining,  cowardly 
confession  of  a  convict,  or  the  unimpeachable  statement 
of  poor  Peter,  whose  mind  may  wander  at  times,  but 
whose  testimony  could  not  be  shaken  by  the  adroit, 
lengthy  and  painstaking  cross-examination  of  the  learned 
Queen's  counsel,  because  he  spoke  the  truth?  All  the 
lawyers  on  earth  cannot  change  that.  That  is  my  text  to- 
day. 

' '  Did  you  not  notice  the  pale  face  and  trembling  form 
of  William  Lindley  when  he  discovered  that  Sir  Cole 
Jerrold  knew  the  musket  story  as  well  as  he  ? 

******* 

"  I  know  you  have  arrived  at  the  truth.  I  feel  it  in 
my  heart.  I  see  it  in  your  eyes.  I  believe  the  Almighty 
has  looked  down  from  above  and  pointed  out  to  you,  and 
each  of  you,  the  truth." 

At  the  close  of  Thorpe's  remarks  a  general  feeling  of 
satisfaction  seemed  to  pervade  the  atmosphere  of  the 
court  room. 

It  was  seven  o'clock  p.  M.  when  the  jury  retired.  All 
the  assemblage  except  those  immediately  connected  with 
the  case  dispersed.  The  gas  was  dimly  burning  in  the 
court  chambers.  The  jury  had  been  out  two  hours.  Nine, 
the  old  bell  in  the  court-house  tower  tolled.  A  pale  face 
hidden  by  a  veil  and  accompanied  by  Mrs.  and  Master 
Tuppcr,  peeped  in  and  inquired  in  a  whisper  of  a  bailiff, 
"Any  news  ?  " 


THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  177 

"No,  inarm,"  the  bailiff  replied,  half  asleep,  rubbing 
his  eyes.  "  It  may  take  hours." 

Ten  o'clock  came.  A  knock  at  the  door ;  a  hum  of 
voices  in  the  corridor  : 

"  They  have  agreed!  " 

The  Chief  Justice  had  stated  that  if  the  jury  agreed 
upon  a  verdict  prior  to  the  hour  ten,  if  sent  for  he  would 
come.  In  he  marched  sternly  with  his  associates.  The 
prisoner  was  brought  in  between  two  officers.  The  lights 
were  turned  up;  the  usual  deep  silence  prevailed. 
Soon  quite  a  number  of  townspeople,  who  had  heard  that 
the  jury  had  agreed,  began  flocking  into  court.  Charles 
Landsdowne  was  pale  but  firm.  The  Squire  sat  near  his 
son. 

The  court  asked  the  foreman  in  a  measured  tone  of 
voice,  "  Have  the  jury  agreed  upon  their  verdict?  " 

"  We  have,  your  worship." 

"Then  state  your  verdict." 

The  foreman  replied,  "  Not  guilty." 

The  future  happiness  of  two  lives  was  suspended  on  this 
answer. 

A  woman's  shriek  was  heard  in  the  back  seats.  Lillie 
Margate  had  fallen  in  a  dead  faint,  and  Charles  Lands- 
downe shed  tears  for  the  first  time  since  the  accusation. 


CHAPTER    XXVI. 

LIBERTY. 

"  Thou  mak'st  the  gloomy  face  of  nature  gay, 
Givest  beauty  to  the  sun,  and  pleasure  to  the  day." 

The  second  day  after  the  trial  dawned  serene  and  beau- 
tiful. Charles  Landsdowne  arose  early,  and  walked  about 
the  dear  old  home,  that  had  so  kindly  sheltered  him 
from  his  earliest  remembrance.  The  birds  in  the  trees 
.seemed  to  sing  with  a  freedom.  The  farm  hands  were 
bustling  about,  laughing  and  joking.  The  maids  were 
singing  at  their  work ;  in  fact  all  nature  seemed  to  beam 
forth  a  pleasant  welcome  to  the  freed  prisoner. 

A  heavy  weight  had  been  lifted  from  the  Squire's 
heart.  He  was  in  his  study,  where  he  usually  sat  an  hour 
in  the  morning,  figuring  up  to  see  how  long  it  would 
take  to  repay  the  debt  on  the  farm, — the  borrowed  sum  he 
had  so  foolishly  squandered.  Charles  had  determined 
that  the  first  stroke  of  business  he  would  perform  after 
his  freedom  would  be  to  pay  this  up,  and  thus  surprise 
his  perplexed  parent.  After  breakfast  he  therefore  took 
a  favorite  riding  horse  and  cantered  to  town.  Arriving 
at  Maidestone  he  settled  with  the  bank  where  the  "  Brand- 
on loan  "  was  negotiated,  and  paid  Thorpe  handsomely 
for  his  successful  defence;  in  fact  a  bigger  fee  than  was 
usual  to  interest  his  nervous  palms;  thanked  him  heartily 
for  his  untiring  energy,  and  journeyed  toward  home. 


THE  MILLIONAIRE  TRAMP.  179 

As  he  was  passing  Fielding's  gate  a  small  gxg-cart  over- 
took him,  and  in  the  seat  was  none  other  than  Lillie. 

Jumping  from  his  saddle  he  shook  both  hands  warmly 
and  planted  upon  her  sweet  cheek  such  an  enthusiastic 
kiss  that  Lillie's  pony  looked  about  saucily,  as  much  as  to 
say,  "  Well,  I  declare  1" 

What  happiness  they  experienced  in  this  meeting  can 
not  be  portrayed  by  pen. 

"Lillie!  you  have  saved  my  name,  my  future,  my 
life!" 

Lillie  blushed.  "  What  a  grand  speech  little  Thorpe 
made." 

"  Yes,  I  have  just  returned  from  Maidestone,  where  I 
have  been  to  compliment  him." 

"  Charles,  how  happy  I  am  that  you  are  free.  Your 
trouble  hung  over  me  like  a  pall,"  said  Lillie,  looking  up 
with  tears  of  joy  in  her  brilliant  eyes.  "  I  chide  my- 
self for  not  hunting  you  up  before." 

"  There,  now,  you  angel  of  light,  do  no^  chide  yourself. 
I  sometimes  think  I  was  very  cowardly  to  run  away,  but 
probably  it  was  all  for  the  best." 

"  That  is  just  what  Thorpe  said,"  replied  Lillie,  resum- 
ing her  gaiety. 

"  What  a  change  has  come  over  my  father.  He  looks 
ten  years  older,  but  I  will  revive  him  again." 

"  We  must  now  break  up  the  feud,"  said  Lillie. 

Landsdowno  grasped  her  hand.  "Yes;  we  have  but 
one  object  in  life  now ;  break  up  the  feud,  and  all  be  good 
friends." 

"  Yes,  good  friends,"  she  echoed. 

"  You  and  I  good  friends,"  he  said.  "  God  bless  you, 
Lillie,  you  will  be  my  wife." 

Lillie  held  down  her  head.     The  pony  looked  about 


180  THE   MILLIONAIRE   TRAMP. 

again.  The  robins  on  the  stone  fence  by  the  roadside 
were  singing.  The  sweet-scented  clover  wafted  its  fra- 
grance from  the  meadow. 

One  hundred  thoughts  passed  through  Lillie's  mind  at 
once.  The  day  in  the  church ;  the  meeting  on  the  road ;  this 
very  spot  before  the  accusation;  Sir  Richard  Cartwright; 
the  trial ;  the  verdict.  Yes,  the  verdict,  what  will  it  be  ? 
"Yes!"  she  answered;  rather  a  determined  yes,  but, 
withal,  the  sweetest  music  ever  borne  upon  the  breeze  to 
mortal  ear. 

Charles  replied,  "  Bless  you,  mine  forever!  "  Jumping 
in  the  saddle  of  his  impatient  horse  he  saluted  Lillie  gal- 
lantly and  left  the  gig  and  pony  far  behind.  When 
Charles  entered  the  gate  of  Landsdowne  Hall  and  rode 
up  to  the  house  with  the  release  of  the  Squire's  mortgage 
in  his  hand,  and  "  Yes,"  ringing  in  his  ears,  he  was  the 
happiest  man  in  all  England. 

THE  END. 

And  now  we  cannot  dwell  upon  the  golden  scenes  of 
love's  bright  dream.  This  story  has  run  its  course.  All 
interest  ceases  when  nuptials  come,  but,  reader,  a  few 
more  words: 

The  grand  wedding  took  place  at  Margate's.  Squire  and 
Mrs.  Landsdowne  were  present.  Archibald  Margate  and 
Lady  fairly  brimmed  over  with  generosity,  kindliness  and 
welcome.  Emotions  hidden  by  the  antagonism  of  a  cen- 
tury sprang  to  life.  The  Squire  and  Mrs.  Margate,  Arch- 
ibald Margate  and  Mrs.  Landsdowne  danced  in  the  Sir 
Roger  de  Coverly.  The  fortune  bequeathed  by  Old  Tom 
enabled  Charles  Landsdowne  to  add  vast  improvements 
to  the  estate.  As  years  rolled  by  the  flowers  bloom- 
ing along  the  walks  were  picked  by  sweet  little  Lands- 
downes,  and  many  a  day  under  the  shadowy  trees  sat 


THE   MILLIONAIRE   TK.AMP.  181 

Grandpa  Margate  and  Grandpa  Landsdowne  chatting 
harmoniously  on  the  political  problems  of  the  day,  whilst 
the  good  old  ladies  busied  themselves  discussing  house- 
hold afikirs. 

On  a  recent  visit  to  America  Charles  Landsdowne  and 
wife  visited  the  grave  of  Old  Tom,  and  there  now  stands 
over  his  remains  a  monument,  placed  by  the  only  true 
friend  he  ever  had,  which  bears  in  the  inscription  a  brief 
history  of 

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